Reviewed by USGSIndonesia90y ago
M6.8 earthquake 66 km W of Manokwari, Indonesia
Monday, April 5, 1937, 06:56:35 UTC · 0.776°S, 133.477°E
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck 66 km W of Manokwari, Indonesia on Monday, April 5, 1937, 06:56:35 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.8 on July 19, 1934.
- Magnitude
- 6.8
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 15 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VII
- Very strong (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
247 kilotons of TNT
That is about 16 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 519 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
71 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
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 100 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 15 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 · 298 km W of this epicenter
- 7.061 km ENE of Sorong, IndonesiaAugust 10, 1927 · 194 km W of this epicenter
- 7.0141 km ENE of Sorong, IndonesiaNovember 9, 1930 · 126 km W of this epicenter
- 6.868 km W of Manokwari, IndonesiaJuly 19, 1934 · 4 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.4212 km SW of Manokwari, IndonesiaMay 17, 1924 · 190 km S of this epicenter
- 6.473 km N of Manokwari, IndonesiaJanuary 21, 1918 · 95 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.323 km W of Manokwari, IndonesiaFebruary 19, 1921 · 42 km E of this epicenter
- 6.1118 km NE of Sorong, IndonesiaNovember 13, 1930 · 167 km W 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 · 171 km away · intensity VII
250 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1915M6.0
Nw. Irian Jaya
6 Nov 1915 · 282 km away
tsunami
- 1937
New Guinea: Fakfak
6 Nov 1937 · 280 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.