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Magnitude 2.7 - 109 miles S of Mt. Gareloi
May 17, 2023 06:58:05 AKDT (May 17, 2023 14:58:05 UTC)
50.2146°N 178.9072°W Depth 15.9 miles (25 km)
This event has been reviewed by a seismologist
- 120 miles (194 km) S of Tanaga Volcano
- 129 miles (209 km) SE of Amchitka
- 133 miles (215 km) SW of Bobrof Island
- 136 miles (220 km) SE of Semisopochnoi Island
- 140 miles (226 km) SW of Kanaga Volcano
- 151 miles (244 km) SW of Adak
- 152 miles (246 km) SW of Mt. Moffett
- 158 miles (256 km) SW of Mt. Adagdak
- 168 miles (272 km) SE of Little Sitkin Pass
- 170 miles (275 km) SE of Davidof Island
- 176 miles (285 km) SW of Great Sitkin Island
- Magnitude type: Ml2
- 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.