Reviewed by USGSGreece118y ago
M5.9 earthquake 12 km S of Káto Mazaráki, Greece
Thursday, July 15, 1909, 00:35:05 UTC · 37.957°N, 21.629°E
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 12 km S of Káto Mazaráki, Greece on Thursday, July 15, 1909, 00:35:05 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.5 on January 20, 1905.
- Magnitude
- 5.9
- Moderate · 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
11 kilotons of TNT
That is about the energy of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 24 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
50 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 75 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 7 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.9Southern GreeceAugust 11, 1903 · 249 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.56 km N of Tríkeri, GreeceJanuary 20, 1905 · 184 km NE of this epicenter
- 5.8GreeceJune 15, 1909 · 156 km NE of this epicenter
- 5.79 km E of Filiátes, GreeceApril 4, 1905 · 211 km NW of this epicenter
- 5.7101 km WSW of Methóni, GreeceDecember 15, 1906 · 181 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.520 km WSW of Mílos, GreeceJune 23, 1908 · 271 km SE of this epicenter
- 5.4116 km WSW of Lixoúri, GreeceMay 16, 1906 · 210 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 80 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 4,596 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1750
Morea,Cerigo
7 Jun 1750 · 230 km away · intensity X
2,000 deaths
- 1820M6.9
Zakinthos (Zante)
29 Dec 1820 · 40 km away · intensity X
388 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1886M6.8
Triphylie (Peleponese), Philiatra
27 Aug 1886 · 95 km away · intensity X
326 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1767M6.7
Kefalonia
11 Jul 1767 · 108 km away · intensity X
303 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1894M6.7
Locride, Malesina-Martinon (Lokris)
20 Apr 1894 · 155 km away · intensity X
255 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1867M7.2
Cephalonia
4 Feb 1867 · 110 km away · intensity X
223 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.