Reviewed by USGSPapua New Guinea92y ago
M5.9 earthquake 130 km SW of Aitape, Papua New Guinea
Tuesday, September 24, 1935, 05:01:09 UTC · 4.084°S, 141.645°E
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 130 km SW of Aitape, Papua New Guinea on Tuesday, September 24, 1935, 05:01:09 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.6 on September 23, 1935.
- 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 earthquake
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 23 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
132 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Woodlark and Maoke plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
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 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 36 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.8New Guinea, Papua New GuineaSeptember 20, 1935 · 38 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.650 km N of Wewak, Papua New GuineaJuly 3, 1918 · 241 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.6158 km WSW of Abepura, IndonesiaOctober 26, 1926 · 298 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.593 km SW of Aitape, Papua New GuineaJuly 29, 1917 · 43 km N of this epicenter
- 7.349 km NNE of Angoram, Papua New GuineaMay 7, 1907 · 292 km E of this epicenter
- 7.143 km SW of Aitape, Papua New GuineaAugust 7, 1931 · 91 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.165 km ENE of Wewak, Papua New GuineaApril 27, 1909 · 293 km E of this epicenter
- 7.061 km W of Angoram, Papua New GuineaJune 9, 1925 · 207 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 7 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 5 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1900M6.9
Nw. Irian Jaya
7 Oct 1900 · 183 km away
5 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1907M7.4
Bismarck Sea
15 Dec 1907 · 145 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1919
Irian Jaya Region
21 Nov 1919 · 197 km away · intensity VIII
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1935M7.8
N-Central
20 Sep 1935 · 38 km away
tsunami
- 1917M7.5
Papua New Guinea
29 Jul 1917 · 43 km away
tsunami
- 1918M7.5
N Coast
3 Jul 1918 · 115 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.