Reviewed by USGSNew Caledonia89y ago
M5.8 earthquake 118 km NE of Tadine, New Caledonia
Wednesday, June 15, 1938, 12:40:50 UTC · 20.726°S, 168.608°E
A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck 118 km NE of Tadine, New Caledonia on Wednesday, June 15, 1938, 12:40:50 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.0 on May 30, 1938.
- Magnitude
- 5.8
- 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 75 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
7 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/2 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 15 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
5 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 75 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.6 on July 5, 1938. 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 46 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 · 84 km N of this epicenter
- 7.828 km ESE of Isangel, VanuatuJune 16, 1910 · 159 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.663 km NW of Isangel, VanuatuOctober 14, 1913 · 186 km N of this epicenter
- 7.6274 km ESE of Tadine, New CaledoniaMarch 16, 1928 · 259 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.2113 km SSE of Port-Vila, VanuatuMarch 22, 1925 · 221 km N of this epicenter
- 7.1175 km SE of Isangel, VanuatuMarch 30, 1910 · 185 km E of this epicenter
- 7.184 km SW of Port-Vila, VanuatuJanuary 24, 1927 · 286 km N of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 14 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 · 82 km away
26 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1901M7.9
Loyalty Islands
9 Aug 1901 · 202 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1920M8.1
Loyalty Islands
20 Sep 1920 · 84 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1878M7.5
Tanna Island
10 Jan 1878 · 192 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1913M8.1
Vanuatu Islands
14 Oct 1913 · 142 km away
- 1878M8.0
Vanuatu Islands
11 Feb 1878 · 192 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.