Reviewed by USGSIndonesia73y ago
M6.9 earthquake 35 km SSE of Nabire, Indonesia
Sunday, June 6, 1954, 16:50:40 UTC · 3.637°S, 135.656°E
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck 35 km SSE of Nabire, Indonesia on Sunday, June 6, 1954, 16:50:40 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.6 on May 27, 1947.
- Magnitude
- 6.9
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 10 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VII
- Very 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
294 kilotons of TNT
That is about 20 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 617 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
11 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Maoke and Birds Head plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
10 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 has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 29 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.21914 Biak EarthquakeMay 26, 1914 · 233 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.736 km NNE of Nabire, IndonesiaJanuary 13, 1916 · 62 km N of this epicenter
- 7.7147 km E of Tual, IndonesiaNovember 6, 1943 · 275 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.6138 km SW of Insrom, IndonesiaMay 27, 1947 · 209 km N of this epicenter
- 7.1152 km NNE of Tual, IndonesiaFebruary 15, 1936 · 272 km W of this epicenter
- 7.196 km SSW of Nabire, IndonesiaJanuary 27, 1942 · 83 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.027 km NE of Nabire, IndonesiaJanuary 13, 1916 · 48 km N of this epicenter
- 6.86 km ENE of Nabire, IndonesiaAugust 3, 1915 · 34 km N 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. The most severe:
- 1914M8.1
New Guinea: Irian Jaya: Japen
26 May 1914 · 247 km away · intensity IX
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1916M8.1
New Guinea: Irian Jaya
13 Jan 1916 · 80 km away
- 1916M8.1
New Guinea: Irian Jaya
13 Jan 1916 · 73 km away
- 1943M7.6
New Guinea: Irian Jaya: Aru Islands
6 Nov 1943 · 292 km away
- 1915M6.0
Nw. Irian Jaya
6 Nov 1915 · 296 km away
tsunami
- 1915
Kaimana
23 May 1915 · 218 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.