M5.0 Earthquake near Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska — April 24, 2021
2021-04-24 09:30:41 UTC (2021-04-24) · approx. 9:30 PM UTC+12 local
Felt by 4 people across nearby locations.
On April 24, 2021 at 09:30 UTC, a magnitude 5.0 intermediate depth earthquake struck near Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska, at a depth of 111.4 km and coordinates 51.9984°, 178.4681°.
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 5.0 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 477 metric tons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 1.7 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
The epicenter is located in Alaska, a region characterized by Pacific Plate subduction beneath the North American Plate, producing frequent megathrust and crustal earthquakes along the Aleutian arc. The nearest mapped fault system is the Aleutian megathrust. View all earthquakes in Alaska.
Learn more: Magnitude scale · Aftershock sequences
Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking
Aggregated felt-report intensity from 4 citizen responses to the USGS Did You Feel It? system. Each colored zone represents the average MMI from reports in that area.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey Did You Feel It?. View on USGS · submit your own report
Earthquake Details
178.4681°E
Technical Information
Nearby Earthquakes (Last 7 Days)
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 5.0 earthquake near Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska?
The magnitude 5.0 earthquake that struck near Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska on April 24, 2021 at 09:30 UTC had a depth of 111.4 km. For context, this was a moderate earthquake that could be widely felt.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at 51.9984°, 178.4681°, which is near Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska. View all earthquakes in Alaska.
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 5.0 earthquakes can continue for days to weeks and gradually diminish over time.
Has Alaska had earthquakes this big before?
The largest recorded earthquake in Alaska was the M9.2 Great Alaska earthquake of March 27, 1964. Today's magnitude 5.0 event is significantly smaller than that historical record.
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us6000e4bf). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2021, April 24, 2021). M5.0 Earthquake near Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska — April 24, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us6000e4bf/