Reviewed by USGSIndonesia92y ago
M5.7 earthquake southwest of Sumatra, Indonesia
Saturday, December 28, 1935, 17:31:15 UTC · 1.959°S, 97.726°E
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck southwest of Sumatra, Indonesia on Saturday, December 28, 1935, 17:31:15 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.6 on December 28, 1935.
- Magnitude
- 5.7
- 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 earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
6 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/3 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 12 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
49 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Sunda 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 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 12 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.6212 km W of Pariaman, IndonesiaDecember 28, 1935 · 196 km N of this epicenter
- 6.7214 km SW of Sibolga, IndonesiaMay 29, 1914 · 246 km N of this epicenter
- 6.563 km SSW of Padang, IndonesiaSeptember 22, 1918 · 269 km E of this epicenter
- 6.410 km W of Pariaman, IndonesiaJune 28, 1926 · 296 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.2251 km SSW of Singkil, IndonesiaOctober 29, 1913 · 235 km N of this epicenter
- 6.2247 km SSW of Singkil, IndonesiaFebruary 12, 1918 · 265 km N of this epicenter
- 6.1190 km SSW of Padangsidempuan, IndonesiaAugust 21, 1934 · 219 km N of this epicenter
- 6.0135 km SW of Padang, IndonesiaApril 16, 1917 · 200 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 2,355 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1861M8.5
Lagundi, Simuk, Tello I
16 Feb 1861 · 110 km away · intensity IX
1,105 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1861M7.0
Sw. Sumatra
9 Mar 1861 · 221 km away
950 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1797M8.0
Sw. Sumatra
10 Feb 1797 · 260 km away · intensity IX
300 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1935M7.9
N Sumatera: Batu I,Padang,Sibolga
28 Dec 1935 · 225 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1861M6.5
Sw. Sumatra
25 Sep 1861 · 258 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1908M7.5
Sw. Sumatra
6 Feb 1908 · 253 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.