Reviewed by USGSTurkey60y ago
M6.8 earthquake 14 km NE of Varto, Turkey
Friday, August 19, 1966, 12:22:10 UTC · 39.269°N, 41.568°E
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck 14 km NE of Varto, Turkey on Friday, August 19, 1966, 12:22:10 UTC, at a depth of 15.1 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.8 on December 26, 1939.
- Magnitude
- 6.8
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 15 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VIII
- Severe (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
239 kilotons of TNT
That is about 16 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 501 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
53 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Anatolian and Arabian 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 lists 5 M2.5+ earthquakes within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.3 on August 20, 1966. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 5.622 km SW of Karlıova, Turkey60y ago · 63 km W of this epicenter
- 6.314 km N of Karlıova, Turkey60y ago · 51 km W of this epicenter
- 5.16 km SSE of Varto, Turkey60y ago · 17 km S of this epicenter
- 5.319 km NW of Varto, Turkey60y ago · 23 km W of this epicenter
- 5.4eastern Turkey60y ago · 34 km SE of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 76 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.820 km NNE of Erzincan, TurkeyDecember 26, 1939 · 184 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.918 km ESE of Pasinler, TurkeySeptember 13, 1924 · 79 km N of this epicenter
- 6.813 km NNE of Sincik, TurkeyDecember 4, 1905 · 282 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.814 km ENE of Yedisu, TurkeyAugust 17, 1949 · 81 km W of this epicenter
- 6.028 km E of Kars, TurkeyMay 1, 1935 · 214 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.04 km NNE of Erzincan, TurkeyNovember 12, 1941 · 186 km W of this epicenter
- 6.0TurkeyNovember 12, 1934 · 121 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.020 km NNE of Erciş, TurkeySeptember 10, 1941 · 162 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 48 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 66,065 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1939M7.8
Erzincan
26 Dec 1939 · 184 km away · intensity XII
32,700 deaths$20 million damagetsunami
- 1859M6.1
Erzurum
2 Jun 1859 · 74 km away
15,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1784
Erzurum,Erzincan
23 Jul 1784 · 184 km away
5,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1903M6.3
Malazgirt
28 Apr 1903 · 82 km away · intensity X
3,560 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1966M6.8
Varto
19 Aug 1966 · 4 km away · intensity IX
2,394 deaths$20 million damage
- 1840M6.7
Mt Ararat, Aguri, Aralikh; Iran: Maku
2 Jul 1840 · 248 km away · intensity IX
1,049 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.