Reviewed by USGSVanuatu77y ago
M6.3 earthquake 85 km S of Isangel, Vanuatu
Sunday, May 28, 1950, 01:36:48 UTC · 20.305°S, 169.389°E
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck 85 km S of Isangel, Vanuatu on Sunday, May 28, 1950, 01:36:48 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.9 on May 26, 1950.
- Magnitude
- 6.3
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 15 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: 100 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
36 kilotons of TNT
That is about 2 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 75 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
99 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the New Hebrides and Australian plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
15 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 lists 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.9 on June 24, 1950. 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 90 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.11920 Vanuatu EarthquakeSeptember 20, 1920 · 102 km W of this epicenter
- 7.828 km ESE of Isangel, VanuatuJune 16, 1910 · 80 km N of this epicenter
- 7.663 km NW of Isangel, VanuatuOctober 14, 1913 · 145 km N of this epicenter
- 7.6274 km ESE of Tadine, New CaledoniaMarch 16, 1928 · 251 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.247 km NNW of Isangel, VanuatuNovember 24, 1944 · 133 km N of this epicenter
- 7.2113 km SSE of Port-Vila, VanuatuMarch 22, 1925 · 195 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.1southeast of the Loyalty IslandsApril 14, 1906 · 298 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 17 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 26 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1875M8.1
Loyalty Islands: Lifou Island
28 Mar 1875 · 99 km away
26 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1901M7.9
Loyalty Islands
9 Aug 1901 · 199 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1920M8.1
Loyalty Islands
20 Sep 1920 · 102 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1878M7.5
Tanna Island
10 Jan 1878 · 172 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1913M8.1
Vanuatu Islands
14 Oct 1913 · 98 km away
- 1878M8.0
Vanuatu Islands
11 Feb 1878 · 172 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.