Reviewed by USGSIndonesia97y ago
M7.0 earthquake 141 km ENE of Sorong, Indonesia
Sunday, November 9, 1930, 19:08:39 UTC · 0.358°S, 132.420°E
A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck 141 km ENE of Sorong, Indonesia on Sunday, November 9, 1930, 19:08:39 UTC, at a depth of 25.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.0 on August 10, 1927.
- Magnitude
- 7.0
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 25 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
415 kilotons of TNT
That is about 28 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 871 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
42 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Birds Head and Philippine Sea plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
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 100 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.1 on November 13, 1930. 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 10 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.360 km WNW of Sorong, IndonesiaNovember 10, 1925 · 182 km W of this epicenter
- 7.061 km ENE of Sorong, IndonesiaAugust 10, 1927 · 81 km W of this epicenter
- 6.4212 km SW of Manokwari, IndonesiaMay 17, 1924 · 233 km S of this epicenter
- 6.473 km N of Manokwari, IndonesiaJanuary 21, 1918 · 189 km E of this epicenter
- 6.323 km W of Manokwari, IndonesiaFebruary 19, 1921 · 168 km E of this epicenter
- 6.149 km NW of Sorong, IndonesiaJune 11, 1927 · 163 km W of this epicenter
- 6.0149 km WNW of Sorong, IndonesiaMarch 23, 1929 · 268 km W of this epicenter
- 5.9156 km WSW of Manokwari, IndonesiaAugust 7, 1917 · 139 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 1 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 250 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1864M7.8
Irian Jaya: Manokwari
23 May 1864 · 296 km away · intensity VII
250 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.