QuakeScout
Magnitude5.6

Reviewed by USGS68y ago

M5.6 earthquake in Kermadec Islands region

Wednesday, September 16, 1959, 10:07:54 UTC · 28.992°S, 176.862°W

A magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck in Kermadec Islands region on Wednesday, September 16, 1959, 10:07:54 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.7 on September 16, 1959.

Magnitude
5.6
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

3 kilotons of TNT

That is about 1/5 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 7 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

77 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Kermadec and Pacific plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.

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 3 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.4 on September 29, 1959. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

M3M4M5M61h6h1d3d7d14d30dMainshock M5.6
Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.
  1. 6.4Kermadec Islands region67y ago · 28 km NE of this epicenter
  2. 5.9Kermadec Islands region68y ago · 73 km E of this epicenter
  3. 6.2Kermadec Islands region68y ago · 48 km NE of this epicenter

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 92 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 8.21917 Kermadec Islands, New Zealand EarthquakeMay 1, 1917 · 246 km S of this epicenter
  2. 7.5Kermadec Islands regionFebruary 27, 1955 · 143 km NE of this epicenter
  3. 7.5Kermadec Islands, New ZealandNovember 16, 1917 · 134 km SW of this epicenter
  4. 7.3Kermadec Islands regionSeptember 14, 1959 · 38 km NW of this epicenter
  5. 7.2Kermadec Islands, New ZealandAugust 2, 1941 · 113 km SW of this epicenter
  6. 7.2Kermadec Islands, New ZealandApril 17, 1919 · 207 km SW of this epicenter
  7. 7.1Kermadec Islands, New ZealandJune 29, 1910 · 214 km S of this epicenter
  8. 7.1Kermadec Islands, New ZealandSeptember 16, 1941 · 97 km W of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 5 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:

  1. 1917M8.0

    Kermadec Islands

    1 May 1917 · 27 km away

    tsunami

  2. 1955M7.8

    Kermadec Islands

    27 Feb 1955 · 173 km away

  3. 1959M7.7

    Kermadec Islands

    14 Sep 1959 · 56 km away

  4. 1943M7.6

    S Of

    14 Sep 1943 · 113 km away

  5. 1917M7.5

    S Of

    16 Nov 1917 · 62 km away

    tsunami

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

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