Reviewed by USGSVanuatu117y ago
M7.2 earthquake 56 km N of Port-Olry, Vanuatu
Saturday, November 26, 1910, 04:41:19 UTC · 14.532°S, 167.057°E
A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck 56 km N of Port-Olry, Vanuatu on Saturday, November 26, 1910, 04:41:19 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.4 on November 9, 1910.
- Magnitude
- 7.2
- Major · mw
- Depth
- 35 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
888 kilotons of TNT
That is about 59 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 1,862 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
85 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the New Hebrides and Australian 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 9 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.447 km WSW of Norsup, VanuatuNovember 9, 1910 · 194 km S of this epicenter
- 7.3207 km E of Sola, VanuatuFebruary 19, 1905 · 263 km E of this epicenter
- 7.1157 km E of Lakatoro, VanuatuOctober 11, 1907 · 267 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.046 km WNW of Port-Olry, VanuatuApril 10, 1909 · 51 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.84 km S of Sola, VanuatuJune 27, 1909 · 87 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.761 km SSW of Sola, VanuatuNovember 10, 1910 · 30 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.6139 km ESE of Lakatoro, VanuatuApril 25, 1905 · 273 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 6 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1910M7.2
Espiritu Santo
10 Nov 1910 · 84 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1909
Espiritu Santo
8 Jul 1909 · 109 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1903M7.9
Vanuatu Islands
13 May 1903 · 292 km away
- 1910M7.9
Espiritu Santo
9 Nov 1910 · 199 km away
- 1892
Espiritu Santo
Aug 1892 · 83 km away
tsunami
- 1905
Malo Pass
19 Mar 1905 · 120 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.