Reviewed by USGSIndonesia64y ago
M6.3 earthquake 234 km SSE of Sofifi, Indonesia
Tuesday, April 30, 1963, 00:58:22 UTC · 1.042°S, 128.706°E
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck 234 km SSE of Sofifi, Indonesia on Tuesday, April 30, 1963, 00:58:22 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.1 on April 16, 1963.
- Magnitude
- 6.3
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 35 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- V
- Moderate (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
46 kilotons of TNT
That is about 3 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 95 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
132 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Birds Head and Banda Sea plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
35 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 45 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.4193 km W of Sorong, IndonesiaOctober 7, 1923 · 96 km E of this epicenter
- 7.360 km WNW of Sorong, IndonesiaNovember 10, 1925 · 239 km E of this epicenter
- 7.1124 km WNW of Ambon, IndonesiaMarch 1, 1948 · 293 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.1197 km SSE of Sofifi, IndonesiaApril 16, 1963 · 71 km W of this epicenter
- 7.1204 km SSE of Sofifi, IndonesiaApril 16, 1963 · 74 km W of this epicenter
- 7.0121 km ESE of Labuha, IndonesiaMay 1, 1904 · 27 km W of this epicenter
- 7.0114 km NW of Ambon, IndonesiaAugust 29, 1919 · 265 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.654 km NNE of Ternate, IndonesiaSeptember 25, 1947 · 287 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 20 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,498 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1899M7.8
Banda Sea
29 Sep 1899 · 219 km away
2,460 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1855
Maluku: Ternate Island
14 Jul 1855 · 258 km away · intensity IX
34 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1754M6.5
Ambon Island
18 Aug 1754 · 274 km away
4 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1815
Ambon Island
11 Apr 1815 · 298 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1840
Maluku: Ternate Island
14 Feb 1840 · 256 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1932
Ambon Island, Ceram Island
9 Sep 1932 · 284 km away · intensity VII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.