Reviewed by USGS122y ago
M7.2 earthquake in Aegean Sea
Wednesday, November 8, 1905, 22:06:11 UTC · 40.092°N, 24.627°E
A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck in Aegean Sea on Wednesday, November 8, 1905, 22:06:11 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). No earthquake of this size or larger appears within 300 km in the USGS catalog since 1900.
- Magnitude
- 7.2
- Major · mw
- Depth
- 15 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- —
- No ShakeMap
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 200 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
1.1 megatons of TNT
That is about 73 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 2,291 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
3 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Aegean Sea and Eurasian plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
15 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.
Did You Feel It?
Where it was felt
No “Did You Feel It?” reports have been published for this event yet. If you felt it, you can add your report on the USGS website.
I felt it — report to USGS ↗USGS PAGER estimate
Who was exposed to shaking
USGS publishes PAGER impact estimates for significant earthquakes, usually within an hour. No PAGER estimate is available for this event.
After the main event
Aftershocks within 200 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 200 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.3 on November 9, 1905. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 4 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.07 km SE of Stara Kresna, BulgariaApril 4, 1904 · 218 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.86 km W of Stara Kresna, BulgariaApril 4, 1904 · 229 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.56 km N of Tríkeri, GreeceJanuary 20, 1905 · 168 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.115 km NE of Bobov Dol, BulgariaOctober 8, 1905 · 291 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 43 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 24,150 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1883M7.3
Ayvalik, Izmir, Cesme
15 Oct 1883 · 241 km away · intensity X
15,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1881M7.3
Khios; Turkey: Cesme
3 Apr 1881 · 248 km away · intensity XI
7,866 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1867M7.0
Mitilini; Turkey: Izmir
7 Mar 1867 · 181 km away
563 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1894M6.7
Locride, Malesina-Martinon (Lokris)
20 Apr 1894 · 206 km away · intensity X
255 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1817M6.6
Achaia: Aeghion
23 Aug 1817 · 290 km away · intensity X
128 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1870M7.5
Greece
30 Sep 1870 · 255 km away
100 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.