Reviewed by USGSPapua New Guinea83y ago
M7.2 earthquake 205 km SE of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea
Thursday, December 23, 1943, 19:00:14 UTC · 5.570°S, 153.666°E
A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck 205 km SE of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea on Thursday, December 23, 1943, 19:00:14 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.2 on January 13, 1941.
- Magnitude
- 7.2
- Major · mw
- Depth
- 35 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 200 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
801 kilotons of TNT
That is about 53 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 1,679 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
13 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the North Bismarck and South Bismarck 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 200 km
USGS lists 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 200 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.5 on December 24, 1943. 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 99 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.21919 Papua New Guinea EarthquakeMay 6, 1919 · 88 km N of this epicenter
- 8.060 km SE of Kokopo, Papua New GuineaJanuary 1, 1916 · 146 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.885 km S of Panguna, Papua New GuineaJanuary 30, 1939 · 254 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.874 km SSW of Kokopo, Papua New GuineaFebruary 2, 1920 · 195 km W of this epicenter
- 7.497 km SW of Rabaul, Papua New GuineaMay 30, 1913 · 254 km W of this epicenter
- 7.2New Britain region, Papua New GuineaJanuary 13, 1941 · 241 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.0204 km NNW of Arawa, Papua New GuineaSeptember 1, 1912 · 149 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.069 km ESE of Kokopo, Papua New GuineaNovember 4, 1923 · 144 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 16 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 517 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1937
Keravia, Rabaul, Kokopo
28 May 1937 · 217 km away · intensity VIII
507 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1939M7.7
Bougainville Island
30 Jan 1939 · 254 km away
5 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1941M7.4
Bismarck Sea
13 Jan 1941 · 235 km away
4 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1878
Bismarck Sea
4 Feb 1878 · 215 km away
1 deathtsunami
- 1919M8.2
Solomon Islands
6 May 1919 · 88 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1916M7.9
Solomon Islands
1 Jan 1916 · 154 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.