Reviewed by USGSIndonesia98y ago
M6.7 earthquake 171 km W of Meulaboh, Indonesia
Monday, December 9, 1929, 06:49:59 UTC · 4.133°N, 94.583°E
A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck 171 km W of Meulaboh, Indonesia on Monday, December 9, 1929, 06:49:59 UTC, at a depth of 25.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.9 on November 4, 1917.
- Magnitude
- 6.7
- Strong · 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
175 kilotons of TNT
That is about 12 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 367 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
147 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Burma and Indian 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 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 7 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.2The 1907 Sumatra Earthquake and TsunamiJanuary 4, 1907 · 193 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.928 km NNE of Sinabang, IndonesiaNovember 4, 1917 · 267 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.860 km W of Sinabang, IndonesiaNovember 2, 1908 · 225 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.327 km E of Meulaboh, IndonesiaSeptember 11, 1912 · 199 km E of this epicenter
- 6.133 km SW of Sinabang, IndonesiaDecember 19, 1915 · 270 km SE of this epicenter
- 5.850 km ENE of Sabang, IndonesiaJuly 27, 1928 · 250 km NE of this epicenter
- 5.815 km NNW of Sinabang, IndonesiaSeptember 23, 1926 · 258 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 9 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,188 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1907M8.2
Nw Sumatra: Gunungsitoli, Barus
4 Jan 1907 · 193 km away
2,188 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1837M7.3
Banda Atjeh
29 Sep 1837 · 219 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1816
Penang Island
1 May 1816 · 233 km away
tsunami
- 1885
Banda Atjeh
14 Dec 1885 · 176 km away
tsunami
- 1886
Koeta Radja (Atjeh)
31 Jan 1886 · 181 km away
tsunami
- 1887
Sumatra: Aceh: Sigli
19 May 1887 · 211 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.