Reviewed by USGSVanuatu110y ago
M6.1 earthquake 277 km ESE of Sola, Vanuatu
Tuesday, May 29, 1917, 06:03:27 UTC · 14.953°S, 169.871°E
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck 277 km ESE of Sola, Vanuatu on Tuesday, May 29, 1917, 06:03:27 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.3 on January 5, 1915.
- Magnitude
- 6.1
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 15 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- —
- No ShakeMap
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
19 kilotons of TNT
That is about the energy of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 40 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
110 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the New Hebrides and Pacific 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 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 8 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.3207 km E of Sola, VanuatuFebruary 19, 1905 · 102 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.397 km E of Port-Olry, VanuatuNovember 22, 1911 · 204 km W of this epicenter
- 7.344 km SSW of Sola, VanuatuJanuary 5, 1915 · 282 km W of this epicenter
- 7.1157 km E of Lakatoro, VanuatuOctober 11, 1907 · 169 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.955 km SSW of Sola, VanuatuJuly 11, 1911 · 289 km W of this epicenter
- 6.84 km S of Sola, VanuatuJune 27, 1909 · 275 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.761 km SSW of Sola, VanuatuNovember 10, 1910 · 288 km W of this epicenter
- 6.6139 km ESE of Lakatoro, VanuatuApril 25, 1905 · 208 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 2 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1909
Espiritu Santo
8 Jul 1909 · 293 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1905
Malo Pass
19 Mar 1905 · 295 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.