Reviewed by USGSTimor Leste74y ago
M6.8 earthquake 89 km NW of Pante Makasar, Timor Leste
Thursday, June 25, 1953, 10:45:05 UTC · 8.552°S, 123.897°E
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck 89 km NW of Pante Makasar, Timor Leste on Thursday, June 25, 1953, 10:45:05 UTC, at a depth of 25.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.0 on February 14, 1952.
- Magnitude
- 6.8
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 25 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VI
- Strong (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 100 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
274 kilotons of TNT
That is about 18 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 575 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
85 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Banda Sea and Timor plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
25 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 lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.8 on June 26, 1953. 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 24 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.270 km SE of Maumere, IndonesiaOctober 20, 1938 · 138 km W of this epicenter
- 7.077 km N of Baukau, Timor LesteFebruary 14, 1952 · 298 km E of this epicenter
- 7.0199 km SSW of Katabu, IndonesiaMarch 3, 1927 · 295 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.0194 km SE of Baubau, IndonesiaAugust 6, 1914 · 222 km N of this epicenter
- 6.984 km N of Metinaro, Timor LesteMarch 26, 1930 · 226 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.811 km WSW of Ainaro, Timor LesteMarch 23, 1908 · 176 km E of this epicenter
- 6.749 km NW of Pante Makasar, Timor LesteMarch 9, 1951 · 44 km S of this epicenter
- 6.699 km NNW of Pante Makasar, Timor LesteMarch 28, 1923 · 24 km NE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 4 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 250 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1896
Timor: Alor Island
18 Apr 1896 · 100 km away · intensity VIII
250 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1814
Timor Island, Kupang, Kissar Island
1814 · 187 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1944M7.5
Flores
22 Mar 1944 · 44 km away
- 1891M7.0
Timor Sea
5 Oct 1891 · 51 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.