Reviewed by USGSIndonesia101y ago
M6.3 earthquake 103 km W of Abepura, Indonesia
Tuesday, October 26, 1926, 14:16:02 UTC · 2.671°S, 139.706°E
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck 103 km W of Abepura, Indonesia on Tuesday, October 26, 1926, 14:16:02 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
- VI
- 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
47 kilotons of TNT
That is about 3 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 99 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
20 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 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.1 on October 27, 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 18 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 · 129 km W of this epicenter
- 7.6158 km WSW of Abepura, IndonesiaOctober 26, 1926 · 57 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.593 km SW of Aitape, Papua New GuineaJuly 29, 1917 · 252 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.073 km ENE of Vanimo, Papua New GuineaDecember 15, 1907 · 245 km E of this epicenter
- 6.9148 km E of Biak, IndonesiaApril 5, 1922 · 293 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.825 km NNW of Jayapura, IndonesiaDecember 31, 1911 · 114 km E of this epicenter
- 6.8221 km WSW of Abepura, IndonesiaOctober 10, 1921 · 120 km W of this epicenter
- 6.8179 km WNW of Abepura, IndonesiaFebruary 19, 1921 · 94 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 · 151 km away
5 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1921
New Guinea: Irian Jaya: Sentani
10 Oct 1921 · 109 km away · intensity VII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1919
Irian Jaya Region
21 Nov 1919 · 117 km away · intensity VIII
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1926M7.9
New Guinea: Irian Jaya
26 Oct 1926 · 163 km away
- 1917M7.5
Papua New Guinea
29 Jul 1917 · 252 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.