Reviewed by USGSTimor Leste97y ago
M6.2 earthquake 90 km N of Baukau, Timor Leste
Sunday, March 30, 1930, 15:19:26 UTC · 7.661°S, 126.358°E
A magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck 90 km N of Baukau, Timor Leste on Sunday, March 30, 1930, 15:19:26 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.9 on March 26, 1930.
- Magnitude
- 6.2
- 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 earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
33 kilotons of TNT
That is about 2 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 70 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
40 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Banda Sea and Timor 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 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 11 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.3145 km NNE of Lospalos, Timor LesteAugust 30, 1917 · 144 km E of this epicenter
- 7.258 km ENE of Lospalos, Timor LesteSeptember 29, 1905 · 140 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.0194 km SE of Baubau, IndonesiaAugust 6, 1914 · 290 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.984 km N of Metinaro, Timor LesteMarch 26, 1930 · 63 km W of this epicenter
- 6.811 km WSW of Ainaro, Timor LesteMarch 23, 1908 · 185 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.699 km NNW of Pante Makasar, Timor LesteMarch 28, 1923 · 270 km W of this epicenter
- 6.3Banda SeaMay 19, 1920 · 194 km NW of this epicenter
- 5.9118 km N of Baukau, Timor LesteMarch 26, 1930 · 28 km N 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:
- 1896
Timor: Alor Island
18 Apr 1896 · 189 km away · intensity VIII
250 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1917M7.8
Banda Sea
30 Aug 1917 · 182 km away
- 1891M7.0
Timor Sea
5 Oct 1891 · 299 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.