Reviewed by USGSGreece95y ago
M6.9 earthquake 7 km NNE of Ágios Nikólaos, Greece
Monday, September 26, 1932, 19:20:46 UTC · 40.311°N, 23.740°E
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck 7 km NNE of Ágios Nikólaos, Greece on Monday, September 26, 1932, 19:20:46 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.1 on April 18, 1928.
- Magnitude
- 6.9
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 10 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 100 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
338 kilotons of TNT
That is about 22 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 708 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
49 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Aegean Sea and Eurasian plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
10 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 lists 4 M2.5+ earthquakes within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.3 on September 29, 1932. 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 84 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.2Aegean SeaNovember 8, 1905 · 79 km E of this epicenter
- 7.225 km SE of Malkara, TurkeyAugust 9, 1912 · 290 km E of this epicenter
- 7.19 km S of Stara Zagora, BulgariaApril 14, 1928 · 277 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.13 km W of Brezovo, BulgariaApril 18, 1928 · 252 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.07 km SE of Stara Kresna, BulgariaApril 4, 1904 · 166 km N of this epicenter
- 6.86 km W of Stara Kresna, BulgariaApril 4, 1904 · 174 km N of this epicenter
- 6.730 km SW of Kumbağ, TurkeySeptember 13, 1912 · 295 km E of this epicenter
- 6.73 km SW of Kuklis, North MacedoniaMarch 8, 1931 · 151 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 69 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 4,570 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1912M7.2
Marmara Sea
9 Aug 1912 · 290 km away
2,800 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1867M7.0
Mitilini; Turkey: Izmir
7 Mar 1867 · 259 km away
563 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1894M6.7
Locride, Malesina-Martinon (Lokris)
20 Apr 1894 · 196 km away · intensity X
255 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1932M6.9
Hierissos-Strantonion (Chalkidiki)
26 Sep 1932 · 25 km away · intensity X
161 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1817M6.6
Achaia: Aeghion
23 Aug 1817 · 263 km away · intensity X
128 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1928M6.8
Chirpan
14 Apr 1928 · 247 km away · intensity X
127 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.