Reviewed by USGSMyanmar85y ago
M5.7 earthquake 16 km ENE of Letpandan, Myanmar
Wednesday, August 19, 1942, 18:29:39 UTC · 17.855°N, 95.888°E
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck 16 km ENE of Letpandan, Myanmar on Wednesday, August 19, 1942, 18:29:39 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.7 on July 3, 1933.
- Magnitude
- 5.7
- Moderate · 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 earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
5 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/3 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 9 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
49 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Caribbean and North American 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 75 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 7 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.536 km SSW of Pyu, MyanmarDecember 3, 1930 · 59 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.441 km SW of Nyaunglebin, MyanmarMay 5, 1930 · 56 km E of this epicenter
- 6.736 km NE of Magway, MyanmarJune 24, 1906 · 285 km N of this epicenter
- 6.556 km SSW of Nay Pyi Taw, MyanmarAugust 8, 1929 · 161 km N of this epicenter
- 5.719 km NE of Pyu, MyanmarSeptember 6, 1931 · 110 km NE of this epicenter
- 5.723 km E of Pyu, MyanmarAugust 10, 1931 · 109 km NE of this epicenter
- 5.745 km SE of Pyinmana, MyanmarJuly 3, 1933 · 183 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, which together caused about 586 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1930M7.4
Pegu, Rangoon
5 May 1930 · 56 km away · intensity IX
500 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1930
Tharrawaddy
18 Jul 1930 · 65 km away
50 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1930M7.3
Pyu
3 Dec 1930 · 66 km away
36 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1858
Thayetmyo, Prome
24 Aug 1858 · 158 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)
- 1895
Rangoon
1895 · 122 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1750
Myanmar (Burma) Coast
1750 · 272 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.