Reviewed by USGSIndonesia86y ago
M6.5 earthquake 161 km WNW of Manokwari, Indonesia
Friday, September 12, 1941, 07:02:03 UTC · 0.378°S, 132.700°E
A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck 161 km WNW of Manokwari, Indonesia on Friday, September 12, 1941, 07:02:03 UTC, at a depth of 25.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.8 on April 5, 1937.
- Magnitude
- 6.5
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 25 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VI
- Strong (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 100 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
91 kilotons of TNT
That is about 6 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 191 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
39 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Birds Head and Caroline 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 lists 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.2 on September 14, 1941. 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 16 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.360 km WNW of Sorong, IndonesiaNovember 10, 1925 · 212 km W of this epicenter
- 7.061 km ENE of Sorong, IndonesiaAugust 10, 1927 · 110 km W of this epicenter
- 7.0141 km ENE of Sorong, IndonesiaNovember 9, 1930 · 31 km W of this epicenter
- 6.868 km W of Manokwari, IndonesiaJuly 19, 1934 · 96 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.866 km W of Manokwari, IndonesiaApril 5, 1937 · 97 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.4212 km SW of Manokwari, IndonesiaMay 17, 1924 · 225 km S of this epicenter
- 6.473 km N of Manokwari, IndonesiaJanuary 21, 1918 · 158 km E of this epicenter
- 6.323 km W of Manokwari, IndonesiaFebruary 19, 1921 · 138 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 3 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 250 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1864M7.8
Irian Jaya: Manokwari
23 May 1864 · 265 km away · intensity VII
250 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1938
New Guinea: Fakfak
13 Feb 1938 · 295 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1937
New Guinea: Fakfak
6 Nov 1937 · 295 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.