Reviewed by USGSTimor Leste74y ago
M6.8 earthquake 92 km NNW of Pante Makasar, Timor Leste
Friday, June 26, 1953, 05:42:57 UTC · 8.462°S, 123.992°E
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck 92 km NNW of Pante Makasar, Timor Leste on Friday, June 26, 1953, 05:42:57 UTC, at a depth of 25.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.8 on June 25, 1953.
- Magnitude
- 6.8
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 25 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
256 kilotons of TNT
That is about 17 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 537 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
75 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
25 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 25 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.270 km SE of Maumere, IndonesiaOctober 20, 1938 · 151 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.077 km N of Baukau, Timor LesteFebruary 14, 1952 · 286 km E of this epicenter
- 7.0199 km SSW of Katabu, IndonesiaMarch 3, 1927 · 296 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.0194 km SE of Baubau, IndonesiaAugust 6, 1914 · 212 km N of this epicenter
- 6.984 km N of Metinaro, Timor LesteMarch 26, 1930 · 213 km E of this epicenter
- 6.889 km NW of Pante Makasar, Timor LesteJune 25, 1953 · 14 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.811 km WSW of Ainaro, Timor LesteMarch 23, 1908 · 170 km E of this epicenter
- 6.749 km NW of Pante Makasar, Timor LesteMarch 9, 1951 · 52 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 4 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 250 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1896
Timor: Alor Island
18 Apr 1896 · 87 km away · intensity VIII
250 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1814
Timor Island, Kupang, Kissar Island
1814 · 199 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1944M7.5
Flores
22 Mar 1944 · 54 km away
- 1891M7.0
Timor Sea
5 Oct 1891 · 60 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.