M6.0 Earthquake 12 km W of Çelikhan, Turkey — February 6, 2023
2023-02-06 10:26:46 UTC (2023-02-06) · approx. 1:26 PM UTC+3 local
Felt by 6 people across nearby locations. Maximum shaking intensity MMI 7.4 (severe).
On February 6, 2023 at 10:26 UTC, a magnitude 6.0 shallow crustal earthquake struck 12 km W of Çelikhan, Turkey, at a depth of 10.0 km and coordinates 38.0315°, 38.0984°. The earthquake was reported felt by 6 peopleacross nearby locations, with a maximum shaking intensity of Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) 7.4 (severe). The USGS PAGER system issued a yellow alert level for this event, indicating local impact possible. This earthquake was detected by 65 seismic stations with excellent location accuracy and was assigned a USGS significance rating of 655, making it a moderate-impact event. The nearest populated place is Surgu (population 0).
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 6.0 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 15 kilotons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 8.3 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
The epicenter is located in Turkey, a region characterized by the North Anatolian Fault, a 1,500 km transform boundary driven by the westward extrusion of the Anatolian microplate. The nearest mapped fault system is the North Anatolian Fault. View all earthquakes in Turkey.
Learn more: Magnitude scale · Aftershock sequences
Nearest Populated Places
ShakeMap — predicted shaking intensity
Modeled ground-motion intensity contoured on the Modified Mercalli scale (MMI). Computed by the USGS from the moment-tensor solution and regional ground-motion prediction equations.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey ShakeMap. View interactive ShakeMap on USGS
Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking
Aggregated felt-report intensity from 6 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
Population exposure (USGS PAGER)
Estimated population that experienced each level of shaking. Based on the USGS PAGER rapid impact assessment, which combines ShakeMap output with global population grids.
| Shaking intensity (MMI) | Description | Population exposed |
|---|---|---|
| MMI 3 | weak | 9,796,070 |
| MMI 4 | light | 6,621,705 |
| MMI 5 | moderate | 888,681 |
| MMI 6 | strong | 75,822 |
| MMI 7 | very strong | 13,011 |
Earthquake Details
38.0984°E
Technical Information
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 6.0 earthquake near Çelikhan, Turkey?
The magnitude 6.0 earthquake that struck 12 km W of Çelikhan, Turkey on February 6, 2023 at 10:26 UTC had a depth of 10.0 km. It was felt by 6 people with maximum shaking intensity of MMI 7.4 (severe). For context, this was a strong earthquake capable of causing significant damage.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at 38.0315°, 38.0984°, which is 12 km W of Çelikhan, Turkey. The nearest populated place is Surgu (population 0). View all earthquakes in Turkey.
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 6.0 earthquakes can continue for weeks to months and gradually diminish over time.
Has Turkey had earthquakes this big before?
The largest recorded earthquake in Turkey was the M7.8 Kahramanmaraş earthquake of February 6, 2023. Today's magnitude 6.0 event is significantly smaller than that historical record.
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us6000jm1y). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2023, February 6, 2023). M6.0 Earthquake 12 km W of Çelikhan, Turkey — February 6, 2023. Retrieved September 3, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us6000jm1y/