Reviewed by USGSIndonesia107y ago
M6.8 earthquake 179 km WNW of Abepura, Indonesia
Saturday, February 19, 1921, 18:14:43 UTC · 2.077°S, 139.103°E
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck 179 km WNW of Abepura, Indonesia on Saturday, February 19, 1921, 18:14:43 UTC, at a depth of 25.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M8.2 on May 26, 1914.
- Magnitude
- 6.8
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 25 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 earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
201 kilotons of TNT
That is about 13 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 422 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
10 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
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 6 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.21914 Biak EarthquakeMay 26, 1914 · 240 km W of this epicenter
- 7.8230 km W of Abepura, IndonesiaJune 1, 1906 · 76 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.825 km NNW of Jayapura, IndonesiaDecember 31, 1911 · 176 km E of this epicenter
- 6.5110 km SSE of Biak, IndonesiaJuly 5, 1914 · 276 km W of this epicenter
- 6.3200 km NW of Abepura, IndonesiaDecember 26, 1916 · 62 km N of this epicenter
- 6.2172 km W of Abepura, IndonesiaJuly 30, 1917 · 89 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 4 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 · 236 km away
5 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1914M8.1
New Guinea: Irian Jaya: Japen
26 May 1914 · 242 km away · intensity IX
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1921
New Guinea: Irian Jaya: Sentani
10 Oct 1921 · 42 km away · intensity VII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1919
Irian Jaya Region
21 Nov 1919 · 190 km away · intensity VIII
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.