Reviewed by USGSTurkey103y ago
M6.9 earthquake 18 km ESE of Pasinler, Turkey
Saturday, September 13, 1924, 14:34:16 UTC · 39.938°N, 41.876°E
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck 18 km ESE of Pasinler, Turkey on Saturday, September 13, 1924, 14:34:16 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). No earthquake of this size or larger appears within 300 km in the USGS catalog since 1900.
- Magnitude
- 6.9
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 15 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
294 kilotons of TNT
That is about 20 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 617 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
121 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Anatolian and Arabian plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
15 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 M5.6 on September 27, 1924. 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 8 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 5.83 km W of Stepanavan, ArmeniaOctober 12, 1912 · 241 km NE of this epicenter
- 5.78 km N of Başkale, TurkeyApril 25, 1918 · 273 km SE of this epicenter
- 5.711 km NW of Ahlat, TurkeyJanuary 27, 1913 · 132 km S of this epicenter
- 5.716 km NNW of Ergani, TurkeyMay 19, 1915 · 255 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.65 km NW of Kelkit, TurkeyMay 20, 1905 · 212 km W of this epicenter
- 5.625 km NNE of Eleşkirt, TurkeyMay 13, 1924 · 78 km E of this epicenter
- 5.56 km NW of Kveda Chkhorots’q’u, GeorgiaAugust 29, 1907 · 289 km N of this epicenter
- 5.311 km SE of Baykan, TurkeyJune 3, 1907 · 205 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 26 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 27,218 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1859M6.1
Erzurum
2 Jun 1859 · 49 km away
15,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1784
Erzurum,Erzincan
23 Jul 1784 · 205 km away
5,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1903M6.3
Malazgirt
28 Apr 1903 · 107 km away · intensity X
3,560 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1840M6.7
Mt Ararat, Aguri, Aralikh; Iran: Maku
2 Jul 1840 · 217 km away · intensity IX
1,049 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1903M5.8
Varginis,Cardahli,Mehkerek
28 May 1903 · 128 km away · intensity VIII
1,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1843
Khvoy (Khoy)
18 Apr 1843 · 300 km away · intensity VII
1,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.