Reviewed by USGSIndonesia78y ago
M6.3 earthquake 86 km N of Ruteng, Indonesia
Saturday, April 23, 1949, 11:15:33 UTC · 7.831°S, 120.560°E
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck 86 km N of Ruteng, Indonesia on Saturday, April 23, 1949, 11:15:33 UTC, at a depth of 20.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.2 on October 20, 1938.
- Magnitude
- 6.3
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 20 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- V
- Moderate (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
51 kilotons of TNT
That is about 3 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 106 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
2 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
20 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 19 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 · 271 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.0199 km SSW of Katabu, IndonesiaMarch 3, 1927 · 206 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.0133 km NNE of Pototano, IndonesiaJuly 5, 1911 · 296 km W of this epicenter
- 7.084 km SSE of Dompu, IndonesiaMay 9, 1922 · 261 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.724 km ESE of Ruteng, IndonesiaNovember 28, 1928 · 97 km S of this epicenter
- 6.377 km WSW of Waingapu, IndonesiaOctober 15, 1923 · 256 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.362 km S of Waingapu, IndonesiaOctober 15, 1923 · 267 km S of this epicenter
- 6.3139 km SSE of Dompu, IndonesiaDecember 21, 1938 · 290 km SW 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 500 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1820M7.5
Sulawesi: Makasar
29 Dec 1820 · 195 km away · intensity X
500 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1828
Sulawesi
29 Dec 1828 · 195 km away · intensity IX
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1836M7.5
Flores Sea
28 Nov 1836 · 211 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1837
Sumbawa Island: Bima
28 Nov 1837 · 239 km away · intensity IX
Limited damage (under $1M)
- 1897M5.5
Kajuadi Island
15 Mar 1897 · 118 km away
tsunami
- 1836
Flores Sea
5 Mar 1836 · 211 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.