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Magnitude 5.2 - 47 miles SW of Buldir Is
December 10, 2022 13:11:04 AKST (December 10, 2022 22:11:04 UTC)
51.7848°N 175.3211°E Depth 12.4 miles (20 km)
This event has been reviewed by a seismologist
- 47 miles (76 km) SW of Buldir Island
- 82 miles (132 km) SE of Shemya Is
- 99 miles (160 km) W of Kiska Volcano
- 119 miles (192 km) SE of Attu
- 121 miles (196 km) W of Segula Peak
- 129 miles (209 km) W of Davidof Island
- 132 miles (214 km) W of Little Sitkin Pass
- 159 miles (257 km) W of Amchitka
- 183 miles (296 km) W of Semisopochnoi Island
- 252 miles (408 km) W of Mt. Gareloi
- 279 miles (452 km) W of Tanaga Volcano
- Magnitude type: Mww2
- Event type: earthquake
Tectonic Setting of the Aleutian Islands
The world's largest earthquakes originate along convergent plate boundaries such as the Aleutian megathrust. Starting in 1938, a series of three great earthquakes ruptured the subduction zone along its entire length from the Alaska Peninsula to the western Aleutians with the exception of a small gap near the Shumagin Islands. The sequence began with a M8.2 earthquake southwest of Kodiak Island. A M8.6 in the Andreanof Islands followed in 1957, and the sequence concluded with the Rat Islands M8.7 in 1965. The Shumagin Gap still has not ruptured, but GPS observations suggest that little strain has built up in this region.
Another notable source of seismicity in the arc are the intermediate depth earthquakes within the subducting Pacific Plate, known as the Wadati-Benioff zone. The largest recorded earthquake of this kind was the 2014 M7.9 Little Sitkin event. Shallow earthquakes associated with volcano processes and crustal faults within the overriding North American plate occur regularly and may produce vigorous aftershock or swarm-like sequences.