Reviewed by USGSIndonesia101y ago
M6.3 earthquake 93 km W of Abepura, Indonesia
Tuesday, October 26, 1926, 08:35:15 UTC · 2.437°S, 139.811°E
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck 93 km W of Abepura, Indonesia on Tuesday, October 26, 1926, 08:35:15 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.7 on October 26, 1926.
- Magnitude
- 6.3
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 35 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 100 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
38 kilotons of TNT
That is about 3 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 80 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
43 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Woodlark and Maoke plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
35 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 3 M2.5+ earthquakes within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.3 on October 26, 1926. 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 17 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.8230 km W of Abepura, IndonesiaJune 1, 1906 · 139 km W of this epicenter
- 7.6158 km WSW of Abepura, IndonesiaOctober 26, 1926 · 81 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.593 km SW of Aitape, Papua New GuineaJuly 29, 1917 · 255 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.073 km ENE of Vanimo, Papua New GuineaDecember 15, 1907 · 232 km E of this epicenter
- 6.9148 km E of Biak, IndonesiaApril 5, 1922 · 292 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.825 km NNW of Jayapura, IndonesiaDecember 31, 1911 · 96 km E of this epicenter
- 6.8221 km WSW of Abepura, IndonesiaOctober 10, 1921 · 142 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.8179 km WNW of Abepura, IndonesiaFebruary 19, 1921 · 88 km NW 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 5 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1900M6.9
Nw. Irian Jaya
7 Oct 1900 · 175 km away
5 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1921
New Guinea: Irian Jaya: Sentani
10 Oct 1921 · 113 km away · intensity VII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1919
Irian Jaya Region
21 Nov 1919 · 105 km away · intensity VIII
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1926M7.9
New Guinea: Irian Jaya
26 Oct 1926 · 188 km away
- 1917M7.5
Papua New Guinea
29 Jul 1917 · 255 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.