Reviewed by USGSTimor Leste65y ago
M7.1 earthquake 186 km NE of Lospalos, Timor Leste
Tuesday, May 15, 1962, 05:23:49 UTC · 7.351°S, 128.218°E
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck 186 km NE of Lospalos, Timor Leste on Tuesday, May 15, 1962, 05:23:49 UTC, at a depth of 30.2 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.7 on November 2, 1950.
- Magnitude
- 7.1
- Major · mw
- Depth
- 30 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
674 kilotons of TNT
That is about 45 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 1,413 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
53 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Banda Sea and Timor plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
30 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 30 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.7Banda SeaNovember 2, 1950 · 122 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.5273 km WSW of Tual, IndonesiaJune 3, 1927 · 267 km E of this epicenter
- 7.3145 km NNE of Lospalos, Timor LesteAugust 30, 1917 · 66 km W of this epicenter
- 7.258 km ENE of Lospalos, Timor LesteSeptember 29, 1905 · 132 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.1196 km SSE of Ambon, IndonesiaJuly 4, 1914 · 261 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.077 km N of Baukau, Timor LesteFebruary 14, 1952 · 196 km W of this epicenter
- 6.9Banda SeaOctober 30, 1909 · 165 km E of this epicenter
- 6.984 km N of Metinaro, Timor LesteMarch 26, 1930 · 271 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 6 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 67 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1852M8.3
Maluku: Bandanaira
25 Nov 1852 · 289 km away · intensity IX
60 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1763
Bandaneira
12 Sep 1763 · 248 km away · intensity X
7 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1918M8.1
Banda Sea
18 Nov 1918 · 95 km away
- 1950M8.1
Banda Sea
2 Nov 1950 · 170 km away
- 1917M7.8
Banda Sea
30 Aug 1917 · 29 km away
- 1956M7.5
Banda Sea
18 Jul 1956 · 285 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.