Reviewed by USGSIndonesia64y ago
M5.7 earthquake 213 km N of Amahai, Indonesia
Thursday, April 25, 1963, 16:35:59 UTC · 1.408°S, 128.849°E
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck 213 km N of Amahai, Indonesia on Thursday, April 25, 1963, 16:35:59 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
- 5.7
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 35 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 75 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
6 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/3 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 12 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
104 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 75 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.3 on April 30, 1963. 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 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 · 81 km E of this epicenter
- 7.360 km WNW of Sorong, IndonesiaNovember 10, 1925 · 236 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.1124 km WNW of Ambon, IndonesiaMarch 1, 1948 · 272 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.1197 km SSE of Sofifi, IndonesiaApril 16, 1963 · 99 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.1204 km SSE of Sofifi, IndonesiaApril 16, 1963 · 98 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.0121 km ESE of Labuha, IndonesiaMay 1, 1904 · 55 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.0114 km NW of Ambon, IndonesiaAugust 29, 1919 · 242 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.6145 km SE of Tobelo, IndonesiaMarch 5, 1960 · 242 km N of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 26 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,501 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1899M7.8
Banda Sea
29 Sep 1899 · 181 km away
2,460 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1855
Maluku: Ternate Island
14 Jul 1855 · 300 km away · intensity IX
34 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1754M6.5
Ambon Island
18 Aug 1754 · 236 km away
4 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1711M7.0
Banda Sea
5 Sep 1711 · 289 km away
2 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1950M7.6
Seram
8 Oct 1950 · 273 km away
1 deathSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1802
Banda Sea
Aug 1802 · 265 km away · intensity X
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.