Reviewed by USGSNew Caledonia89y ago
M5.9 earthquake 181 km ENE of Tadine, New Caledonia
Monday, July 4, 1938, 21:12:38 UTC · 21.168°S, 169.578°E
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 181 km ENE of Tadine, New Caledonia on Monday, July 4, 1938, 21:12:38 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.1 on June 30, 1938.
- Magnitude
- 5.9
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 35 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
11 kilotons of TNT
That is about the energy of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 24 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
66 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
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 75 km
USGS lists 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.1 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 58 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 · 175 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.828 km ESE of Isangel, VanuatuJune 16, 1910 · 174 km N of this epicenter
- 7.663 km NW of Isangel, VanuatuOctober 14, 1913 · 242 km N of this epicenter
- 7.6274 km ESE of Tadine, New CaledoniaMarch 16, 1928 · 157 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.2southeast of the Loyalty IslandsNovember 14, 1906 · 260 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.2113 km SSE of Port-Vila, VanuatuMarch 22, 1925 · 290 km N of this epicenter
- 7.1southeast of the Loyalty IslandsAugust 17, 1935 · 233 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 11 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 · 172 km away
26 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1901M7.9
Loyalty Islands
9 Aug 1901 · 102 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1920M8.1
Loyalty Islands
20 Sep 1920 · 175 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1878M7.5
Tanna Island
10 Jan 1878 · 266 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1913M8.1
Vanuatu Islands
14 Oct 1913 · 195 km away
- 1878M8.0
Vanuatu Islands
11 Feb 1878 · 266 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.