QuakeScout
Magnitude3.0

Reported by EMSCPhilippines24d ago

M3.0 earthquake in Mindanao, Philippines

Thursday, September 3, 2026, 02:52:06 UTC · 7.240°N, 123.400°E

A magnitude 3.0 earthquake struck in Mindanao, Philippines on Thursday, September 3, 2026, 02:52:06 UTC, at a depth of 2.0 km (shallow).

Magnitude
3.0
Minor · m
Depth
2 km
Shallow
Reported by
EMSC
Agency PIVS
Nearest tracker
93 km
from Cotabato

Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

477 kg of TNT

That is about 1/31,575 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 1,000 times more energy.

Tectonic setting

423 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Philippine Sea and Sunda plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.

Depth: shallow

2 km

Shallow earthquakes (under 70 km) produce the strongest surface shaking for their size, so they are the ones most likely to cause damage near the epicenter.

After the main event

Aftershocks within 50 km

USGS and EMSC list 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km since this event; the largest was M3.0 on September 3, 2026. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

M31h6h1d3d7d14dMainshock M3.0
Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.
  1. 3.0Mindanao, Philippines23d ago · 24 km SE of this epicenter

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 657 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 8.31918 Mindanao, Philippines EarthquakeAugust 15, 1918 · 200 km S of this epicenter
  2. 7.919 km WNW of Palimbang, PhilippinesAugust 16, 1976 · 129 km SE of this epicenter
  3. 7.825 km SW of Kablalan, PhilippinesJune 7, 2026 · 258 km SE of this epicenter
  4. 7.661 km W of Bantogon, PhilippinesJuly 23, 2010 · 83 km S of this epicenter
  5. 7.5Mindanao, PhilippinesMarch 5, 2002 · 164 km SE of this epicenter
  6. 7.545 km SW of Sarangani, PhilippinesNovember 20, 1984 · 299 km SE of this epicenter
  7. 7.572 km S of Panubigan, PhilippinesJuly 23, 2010 · 54 km S of this epicenter
  8. 7.410 km ESE of Basak, PhilippinesDecember 19, 1928 · 111 km SE of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 44 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 8,835 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1976M8.0

    Mindanao: S

    16 Aug 1976 · 130 km away · intensity VI

    8,000 deaths$134 million damagetsunami

  2. 1955M7.4

    Mindanao: Lanao,Ozamiz,Cotabato

    31 Mar 1955 · 54 km away · intensity VIII

    465 deaths$5 million damagetsunami

  3. 2026M7.8

    Mindanao: S; Indonesia

    7 Jun 2026 · 258 km away · intensity VIII

    107 deaths$25 million damagetsunami

  4. 1928M7.4

    Cotabato,N Coast Of Illana Bay

    19 Dec 1928 · 111 km away · intensity VII

    97 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

  5. 1918M8.3

    Mindanao: Cotabato

    15 Aug 1918 · 200 km away · intensity X

    52 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  6. 1925M6.8

    W. Luzon Island, Philippines

    5 May 1925 · 242 km away · intensity IX

    17 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

Nearby trackers

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