Reviewed by USGSIndonesia107y ago
M7.0 earthquake 188 km SSE of Amahai, Indonesia
Wednesday, June 9, 1920, 11:30:39 UTC · 4.885°S, 129.637°E
A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck 188 km SSE of Amahai, Indonesia on Wednesday, June 9, 1920, 11:30:39 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.1 on July 4, 1914.
- Magnitude
- 7.0
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 15 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- V
- Moderate (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
415 kilotons of TNT
That is about 28 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 871 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
166 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Banda Sea and Timor 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 M6.4 on July 2, 1920. 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 5 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.1196 km SSE of Ambon, IndonesiaJuly 4, 1914 · 65 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.9Banda SeaOctober 30, 1909 · 225 km S of this epicenter
- 6.8Banda SeaNovember 23, 1918 · 220 km S of this epicenter
- 6.5264 km WSW of Tual, IndonesiaMay 5, 1915 · 187 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.4176 km NE of Amahai, IndonesiaNovember 5, 1906 · 288 km N of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 24 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,533 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1899M7.8
Banda Sea
29 Sep 1899 · 245 km away
2,460 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1852M8.3
Maluku: Bandanaira
25 Nov 1852 · 42 km away · intensity IX
60 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1763
Bandaneira
12 Sep 1763 · 130 km away · intensity X
7 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1754M6.5
Ambon Island
18 Aug 1754 · 199 km away
4 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1711M7.0
Banda Sea
5 Sep 1711 · 121 km away
2 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1710
Bandaneira
6 Mar 1710 · 49 km away · intensity IX
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.