Reviewed by USGSIndonesia96y ago
M5.9 earthquake 157 km S of Bengkulu, Indonesia
Friday, September 25, 1931, 21:31:43 UTC · 5.225°S, 102.163°E
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 157 km S of Bengkulu, Indonesia on Friday, September 25, 1931, 21:31:43 UTC, at a depth of 25.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.3 on September 25, 1931.
- Magnitude
- 5.9
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 25 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
10 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/2 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 21 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
123 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Sunda and Australian plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
25 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 23 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.676 km SSW of Sungai Penuh, IndonesiaJune 3, 1909 · 300 km N of this epicenter
- 7.573 km WSW of Bengkulu, IndonesiaJune 25, 1914 · 147 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.3161 km S of Bengkulu, IndonesiaSeptember 25, 1931 · 12 km E of this epicenter
- 7.0164 km SSW of Pagar Alam, IndonesiaFebruary 10, 1931 · 50 km E of this epicenter
- 6.769 km SSE of Bengkulu, IndonesiaApril 15, 1916 · 110 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.7106 km S of Sungai Penuh, IndonesiaJuly 1, 1926 · 263 km N of this epicenter
- 6.7177 km SSW of Pagar Alam, IndonesiaOctober 22, 1925 · 76 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 5 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 20 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1914M7.6
Sumatera
25 Jun 1914 · 150 km away
20 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1770M7.0
Sumatra:
1770 · 31 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1931M7.4
Sw. Sumatra
25 Sep 1931 · 70 km away · intensity VIII
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1818M7.0
Sumatra: Bengkulu
18 Mar 1818 · 155 km away · intensity IX
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1896M6.8
Sw. Sumatra, Java
10 Oct 1896 · 195 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.