Reviewed by USGSVanuatu118y ago
M6.8 earthquake 72 km WSW of Isangel, Vanuatu
Sunday, May 1, 1910, 18:30:37 UTC · 19.858°S, 168.675°E
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck 72 km WSW of Isangel, Vanuatu on Sunday, May 1, 1910, 18:30:37 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.1 on March 30, 1910.
- Magnitude
- 6.8
- Strong · 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 earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
247 kilotons of TNT
That is about 16 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 519 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
56 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the New Hebrides and Australian 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 100 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 5 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.1175 km SE of Isangel, VanuatuMarch 30, 1910 · 204 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.946 km NE of Isangel, VanuatuJune 30, 1905 · 118 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.943 km N of Port-Vila, VanuatuFebruary 4, 1910 · 283 km N of this epicenter
- 6.7220 km E of Tadine, New CaledoniaAugust 18, 1909 · 224 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 12 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 26 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1875M8.1
Loyalty Islands: Lifou Island
28 Mar 1875 · 24 km away
26 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1901M7.9
Loyalty Islands
9 Aug 1901 · 275 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1878M7.5
Tanna Island
10 Jan 1878 · 97 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1878M8.0
Vanuatu Islands
11 Feb 1878 · 97 km away
tsunami
- 1910M7.9
Vanuatu Islands
16 Jun 1910 · 129 km away
- 1863M7.5
Vanuatu Islands
17 Aug 1863 · 97 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.