Reviewed by USGSRussia105y ago
M7.4 earthquake 97 km SSE of Ust’-Kamchatsk Staryy, Russia
Saturday, February 24, 1923, 07:34:44 UTC · 55.461°N, 163.241°E
A magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck 97 km SSE of Ust’-Kamchatsk Staryy, Russia on Saturday, February 24, 1923, 07:34:44 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M8.4 on February 3, 1923.
- Magnitude
- 7.4
- Major · mw
- Depth
- 15 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 earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
1.8 megatons of TNT
That is about 118 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 3,715 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
28 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Okhotsk and North American plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
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 200 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 200 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 22 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.41923 Kamchatka, Russia EarthquakeFebruary 3, 1923 · 207 km SW of this epicenter
- 8.043 km E of Ust’-Kamchatsk Staryy, RussiaJanuary 30, 1917 · 77 km N of this epicenter
- 7.8off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula, RussiaSeptember 15, 1905 · 55 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.3233 km SE of Atlasovo, RussiaJuly 31, 1915 · 173 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.377 km ESE of Mil’kovo, RussiaFebruary 3, 1923 · 260 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.3163 km ENE of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, RussiaFebruary 2, 1923 · 247 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.2143 km E of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, RussiaJune 27, 1904 · 288 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.797 km SE of Mil’kovo, RussiaJuly 24, 1904 · 282 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 13 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 21 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1923M7.2
Near Kamchatka
13 Apr 1923 · 124 km away · intensity X
18 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1923M8.4
Kamchatka
3 Feb 1923 · 207 km away · intensity XI
3 deaths$2 million damagetsunami
- 1923M7.7
Kamchatka Peninsula
24 Feb 1923 · 74 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)
- 1849
Kamchatka
28 Sep 1849 · 182 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1792M8.4
Near Kamchatka
22 Aug 1792 · 181 km away · intensity XI
tsunami
- 1737M7.8
Off Kamchatka
4 Nov 1737 · 16 km away · intensity X
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.