M2.5 Earthquake near Adak, United States — 06 October 2026
A minor earthquake of magnitude 2.5 was recorded near Adak, United States on , with an epicentre 128 km southwest of Adak, at a focal depth of 27.8 km. It ranked as the 502nd strongest of 6819 earthquakes recorded in the United States in the preceding 30 days.
Time (UTC): 2026-10-06 18:17:15
Time (your timezone): —
Magnitude: 2.5 (minor)
Focal depth: 27.8 km (shallow)
Epicentre: 51.0620, -177.9480
Location: 128 km SW of Adak, Alaska
Country: United States
USGS link to NOAA tsunami information: Not linked
Review status: Reviewed
Source: USGS event page
How strong was this earthquake?
Minor earthquakes in this range are felt by people close to the epicentre as a brief jolt or rattle, but they very rarely cause any damage.
A magnitude 2.5 earthquake radiates roughly 85 kg of TNT equivalent in seismic energy.
The USGS assigns this earthquake a significance score of 96, which is below the USGS threshold of more than 600 for its significant-earthquake list. The ranking combines magnitude with available Did You Feel It responses and PAGER alert level; it is not a direct measurement of damage.
What the magnitude scale actually measures →
When it happened locally
That is about 06:25 local solar time at the epicentre, around dawn.
This event was deeper than 88% of the 160,811 earthquakes recorded in the United States in our catalogue and stronger than 92% of them.
Where was the epicentre?
The epicentre was located at 51.0620, -177.9480 — 128 km southwest of Adak. The closest other recorded event was a magnitude 3.5 earthquake 36 km northwest of here on 25 September 2026.
The nearest other settlement in our records is Adak (160 km south).
Why the 28 km depth matters
At 28 km this was a shallow earthquake. Shallow events release their energy close to the surface, so for a given magnitude they produce noticeably stronger shaking — and more damage — than deeper ones. Roughly three quarters of all earthquakes worldwide occur at shallow depths.
This catalogue does not ingest eyewitness responses, so it cannot confirm where this earthquake was felt. Based on magnitude alone, an event this size may be noticed locally, especially close to the epicentre. Its shallow focus makes stronger surface shaking more likely than for a deeper event of the same magnitude.
Read more on how focal depth changes what you feel →
What does the tsunami information flag mean?
The USGS record does not carry a link to NOAA tsunami information. That field is not an all-clear and does not state whether a tsunami occurred. In this case, a damaging tsunami would be less likely because at M2.5 it falls below the magnitude 6.5 threshold that generally applies before a submarine earthquake displaces enough water to generate a damaging tsunami; it occurred inland rather than beneath the sea floor. For an active coastal alert, use tsunami.gov or your local warning authority.
How earthquakes generate tsunamis, and what the alert levels mean →
Aftershocks and local seismic history
No further earthquakes have been recorded within about 150 km of the epicentre since this event was recorded.
116 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or above have been logged within roughly 200 km of this epicentre in our catalogue. The strongest was a magnitude 6.2 event near Adak on 21 March 2025. This M2.5 event released about 354,813 times less energy than that event.
824 earthquakes have been recorded within 100 km of this epicentre in the past year, 52 of them in the past 30 days.
How long aftershock sequences last, and how large they get →
Where this event sits in the record
This earthquake is part of the October 2026 worldwide record, and of earthquakes in the United States during October 2026. Browse the full monthly archive to compare periods.
Nearest recorded earthquakes to this epicentre
- M3.5 earthquake near Adak, United States — (36 km NW)
- M3.5 earthquake near Adak, United States — (46 km WNW)
- M3.1 earthquake near Adak, United States — (46 km NE)
- M3.6 earthquake near Adak, United States — (50 km W)
- M3.0 earthquake near Adak, United States — (59 km NNE)
- M3.4 earthquake near Adak, United States — (68 km WNW)
- M2.0 earthquake near Adak, United States — (76 km NNW)
- M1.3 earthquake near Adak, United States — (86 km N)
- M0.4 earthquake near Adak, United States — (88 km N)
- M0.9 earthquake near Adak, United States — (89 km N)
Other recent earthquakes in the United States
- M1.9 earthquake near Toms Place, United States —
- M1.1 earthquake near Cloverdale, United States —
- M1.7 earthquake near Eielson Air Force Base, United States —
- M2.1 earthquake near Cantwell, United States —
- M1.9 earthquake near Clam Gulch, United States —
- M0.7 earthquake near Palomar Observatory, United States —
- M1.8 earthquake near Aleneva, United States —
- M1.7 earthquake near Silver Peak, United States —
- M1.2 earthquake near Aleneva, United States —
- M0.6 earthquake near King Salmon, United States —
Other magnitude 2 earthquakes worldwide
- M2.5 earthquake near Nikolski, United States —
- M2.4 earthquake near Napa, United States —
- M2.5 earthquake near Chignik, United States —
- M2.2 earthquake near Whites City, United States —
- M2.3 earthquake near Salcha, United States —
- M2.2 earthquake near Tracyton, United States —
- M2.2 earthquake near Willow, United States —
- M2.3 earthquake near Whites City, United States —
Questions about this earthquake
How strong was the earthquake near Adak?
It measured magnitude 2.5 — a minor earthquake. A magnitude 2.5 earthquake radiates roughly 85 kg of TNT equivalent in seismic energy.
How deep was the earthquake near Adak?
The focus was 28 km below the surface, which counts as shallow.
Was the Adak earthquake felt at the surface?
At magnitude 2.5 and a focal depth of 28 km, shaking would have been concentrated near the epicentre.
When did the earthquake near Adak happen?
06 October 2026 at 18:17 UTC.
Was there a tsunami?
No. The USGS record carries no tsunami-information link for this event.
Have there been aftershocks?
No further earthquakes have been recorded within about 150 km of the epicentre since this event was recorded.
How often do earthquakes happen near Adak?
116 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or above have been logged within roughly 200 km of this epicentre in our catalogue. The strongest was a magnitude 6.2 event near Adak on 21 March 2025. This M2.5 event released about 354,813 times less energy than that event.