Reviewed by USGSSolomon Islands63y ago
M7.2 earthquake 55 km WNW of Lata, Solomon Islands
Tuesday, September 17, 1963, 19:20:14 UTC · 10.466°S, 165.360°E
A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck 55 km WNW of Lata, Solomon Islands on Tuesday, September 17, 1963, 19:20:14 UTC, at a depth of 45.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.4 on September 15, 1963.
- Magnitude
- 7.2
- Major · mw
- Depth
- 45 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 earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
985 kilotons of TNT
That is about 65 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 2,065 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
95 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Pacific and Australian plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
45 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 has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 200 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 71 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.8186 km NNW of Sola, VanuatuDecember 17, 1957 · 261 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.7138 km SSE of Lata, Solomon IslandsJuly 18, 1934 · 189 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.428 km NW of Lata, Solomon IslandsSeptember 15, 1963 · 31 km E of this epicenter
- 7.454 km ESE of Lata, Solomon IslandsMay 17, 1941 · 109 km E of this epicenter
- 7.345 km SSE of Lata, Solomon IslandsJuly 21, 1934 · 97 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.1130 km SSE of Lata, Solomon IslandsNovember 16, 1944 · 178 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.0165 km NW of Sola, VanuatuJuly 19, 1934 · 299 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 7 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1934M7.8
Santa Cruz Islands
18 Jul 1934 · 219 km away
tsunami
- 1957M7.8
Santa Cruz Islands
17 Dec 1957 · 251 km away
- 1909M7.7
Solomon Islands
9 Dec 1909 · 65 km away
- 1900M7.6
Santa Cruz Islands
29 Jul 1900 · 65 km away
- 1963M7.5
Solomon Islands
15 Sep 1963 · 45 km away
- 1963M7.5
Solomon Islands
17 Sep 1963 · 21 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.