The 2014 Palma Bay earthquake occurred at 02:54
Alaska Daylight Time
The Alaska Time Zone observes standard time by subtracting nine hours from Coordinated Universal Time ( UTC−09:00). During daylight saving time its time offset is eight hours ( UTC−08:00). The clock time in this zone is based on mean solar ...
on July 25 in the northern
southeastern panhandle of the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
. The earthquake registered 6.0 on the
moment magnitude scale
The moment magnitude scale (MMS; denoted explicitly with or Mw, and generally implied with use of a single M for magnitude) is a measure of an earthquake's magnitude ("size" or strength) based on its seismic moment. It was defined in a 1979 pape ...
and had a maximum
Mercalli intensity
The Modified Mercalli intensity scale (MM, MMI, or MCS), developed from Giuseppe Mercalli's Mercalli intensity scale of 1902, is a seismic intensity scale used for measuring the intensity of shaking produced by an earthquake. It measures the eff ...
of IV (''Light''). It was centered on Palma Bay, from
Elfin Cove
Elfin Cove (Lingít: ''X̱’óot’k’'') is a census-designated place (CDP) near the northwestern corner of Chichagof Island in Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska, United States. The population was 20 at the 2010 census, down from 32 at the 20 ...
and from the state capital of
Juneau
The City and Borough of Juneau, more commonly known simply as Juneau ( ; tli, Dzánti K'ihéeni ), is the capital city of the state of Alaska. Located in the Gastineau Channel and the Alaskan panhandle, it is a unified municipality and the s ...
.
Although there were no injuries or deaths, there were significant disruptions to
Internet
The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...
and
telecommunication
Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that fe ...
s throughout Southeast Alaska, including to major telecom providers
Alaska Communications Systems
Alaska Communications (formerly Alaska Communications Systems or ACS) is a telecommunications corporation headquartered in Anchorage, Alaska. It was the first telecommunications provider in the state of Alaska to maintain a third-generation wire ...
(ACS) and
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the world's largest telecommunications company by revenue and the third largest provider of mobile te ...
wireless, Internet and other communication systems.
Earthquake
The earthquake struck along the strike-slip
Queen Charlotte Fault
The Queen Charlotte Fault is an active transform fault that marks the boundary of the North American plate and the Pacific plate. It is Canada's right-lateral strike-slip equivalent to the San Andreas Fault to the south in California. The Queen Ch ...
, connecting Alaska's
Aleutian Islands
The Aleutian Islands (; ; ale, Unangam Tanangin,”Land of the Aleuts", possibly from Chukchi ''aliat'', "island"), also called the Aleut Islands or Aleutic Islands and known before 1867 as the Catherine Archipelago, are a chain of 14 large v ...
tectonic area with
Southeast Alaska. The mainshock was preceded by less than one minute by a M5.4 foreshock in the immediate area. There were also a number of other M5 or higher events in the days leading up to the main event, but Alaska state
seismologist Michael West stated that there was no evidence that they were related.
Damage
The earthquake caused widespread outages to telecommunications in
Southeast Alaska. Cellphone, Internet and other communications were disrupted for customers of ACS and AT&T throughout the day. Businesses in the area were unable to process credit card transactions, and many local websites were inaccessible. Outages were caused by damage to
undersea
The underwater environment is the region below the surface of, and immersed in, liquid water in a natural or artificial feature (called a body of water), such as an ocean, sea, lake, pond, reservoir, river, canal, or aquifer. Some characterist ...
fiber optic cable
A fiber-optic cable, also known as an optical-fiber cable, is an assembly similar to an electrical cable, but containing one or more optical fibers that are used to carry light. The optical fiber elements are typically individually coated with ...
serving the area. Other outages included the website of
Alaska Electric Light & Power
Alaska Electric Light & Power, also known as AEL&P, is the power utility for Juneau, the capital city of Alaska. AEL&P gets their electricity primarily through the Snettisham hydroelectric power plant, located in an uninhabited region Southeast ...
, the area's largest provider of electricity, although electrical service was not disrupted.
See also
*
List of earthquakes in 2014
This is a list of earthquakes in 2014. Only earthquakes of magnitude 6 or above are included, unless they result in damage and/or casualties, or are notable for some other reason. All dates are listed according to UTC time. Death toll was relat ...
*
List of earthquakes in Alaska
This is an incomplete list of earthquakes in Alaska.
See also
* Geology of Alaska
References
{{Authority control
Earthquakes
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Ala ...
*
List of earthquakes in the United States
References
External links
*
{{Earthquakes in the United States
2014 earthquakes
2014 in Alaska
Communications in Alaska
Palma