The 2002 Denali Fault earthquake
Magnitude 7.9 near Denali National Park, AK

Figure Caption: Map showing M7.9 mainshock as a filled white circle and the October 23, 2002, M6.7 foreshock as an open white circle. Shown are events that occurred between October 22 and November 20, 2002, with a depth of 35km or less. Red symbols are events with zero depth while deeper events are yellow. A total of 1,344 events are shown, including those for which no magnitude has been computed.

Tectonic Setting

Most of the seismic activity in Alaska results from interaction of the northwestward-moving Pacific plate with the corner of the North American plate that comprises Alaska. Along the southeastern panahndle of Alaska, this motion is accommodated by right-lateral strike-slip faulting, but from Yakutat Bay westward along the southern coast of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, the Pacific plate is colliding with Alaska. West of Kayak Island, this collision results in subduction of the Pacific plate beneath continental Alaska and the Aleutian Islands. This underthrusting motion was the cause of the M9.2 Alaska earthquake of 1964. Between Kayak Island and Yakutat Bay, the Pacific plate is mostly coupled to southern Alaska. This coupling has resulted in the rapid, geologically-recent building of the coastal St. Elias Mountains and produces northwest-southeast oriented compressive stress that extends inland through the Alaskan crust to Fairbanks and seaward into the Gulf of Alaska. This compressive stress drives the right-lateral slip witnessed on the Denali-Totschunda fault system.

Geologic Evidence of Past Earthquakes on the Denali Fault

The Current Event

Fault rupture initiated about 25 km east the M6.7 Oct. 23 foreshock and continued eastward amd southeastward for about 300 km, crossing the Richardson and Glenn (Tok Cutoff) highways. Near Mentasta Lake the rupture branched from the Denali fault and continued for about 75 km along the Totschunda fault. This branching from the Denali to the Totschunda was expected based on earlier geologic fault investigations and is reflected in the USGS seismic hazard map of Alaska. The seismic radiation pattern determined by Harvard University seismologists is consistent with the observed right-lateral slip. Preliminary measurements of fault displacements in the field by geologists range from under a meter in some locations in the west to nearly 9 meters near Mentasta Lake.

As of this update, five aftershocks larger than magnitude 5 have occurred, with the most recent three on November 8.

Scientific & Technical Reports and Plans

ANSS Location Map (automatically generated)

Earthquake Summary Poster

ShakeMap
Composite ShakeMap. Strong motion data augmented with observed macroseismic intensity values and model ground motion predictions.

Did You Feel It?
Report shaking and damage at your location. You can also view a map displaying accumulated data from your report and others.

Historical Seismicity

Theoretical P-Wave Travel Times

Historical Moment Tensor Solutions

Harvard Moment Tensor Solution

Phase (Arrival Time) Data

Seismic Hazard Map

October 23, M6.7 Alaska earthquake

USGS Fact Sheet: Rupture in South-Central Alaska -- The Denali Fault Earthquake of 2002

The 2002 Denali Fault Earthquake, Alaska: A Large Magnitude, Slip-Partitioned Event, Science, v. 300, p 1113-1118, 2003. ABSTRACT or FULL TEXT (includes downloadable supplementary material)

2002 Denali Fault Earthquake Special Webpage

Alaska M7.9 FAQ

Animation of 10/23/02 M6.7 Foreshock & 11/03/02 M7.9 Mainshock

State of Alaska, Division of Emergency Services, Special Denali Fault Webpage

Denali Fault Rupture vs. 1857 San Andreas Fault Rupture

News Release from University of Utah on Earthquakes Triggered in Yellowstone