Reviewed by USGSPapua New Guinea108y ago
M7.8 earthquake 74 km SSW of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea
Monday, February 2, 1920, 11:22:24 UTC · 4.967°S, 152.017°E
A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck 74 km SSW of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea on Monday, February 2, 1920, 11:22:24 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M8.2 on May 6, 1919.
- Magnitude
- 7.8
- Major · mw
- Depth
- 35 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
7.8 megatons of TNT
That is about 520 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 16,406 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
91 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the South Bismarck and Solomon Sea 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 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 19 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.21919 Papua New Guinea EarthquakeMay 6, 1919 · 205 km E of this epicenter
- 8.060 km SE of Kokopo, Papua New GuineaJanuary 1, 1916 · 71 km E of this epicenter
- 7.497 km SW of Rabaul, Papua New GuineaMay 30, 1913 · 59 km W of this epicenter
- 7.0204 km NNW of Arawa, Papua New GuineaSeptember 1, 1912 · 292 km E of this epicenter
- 7.0170 km SE of Kimbe, Papua New GuineaMarch 4, 1905 · 206 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.8172 km SE of Kokopo, Papua New GuineaSeptember 3, 1913 · 167 km E of this epicenter
- 6.783 km NE of Rabaul, Papua New GuineaSeptember 30, 1918 · 167 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.795 km S of Kokopo, Papua New GuineaAugust 8, 1918 · 47 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 10 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 1 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1878
Bismarck Sea
4 Feb 1878 · 84 km away
1 deathtsunami
- 1899
New Ireland: East Coast
15 Jan 1899 · 219 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1919M8.2
Solomon Islands
6 May 1919 · 205 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1916M7.9
Solomon Islands
1 Jan 1916 · 64 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1920M7.7
New Britain
2 Feb 1920 · 281 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1900M6.8
Bismarck Sea
10 Sep 1900 · 108 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.