Reviewed by USGSGreece119y ago
M5.5 earthquake 9 km NNW of Amorgós, Greece
Tuesday, June 23, 1908, 16:01:59 UTC · 36.911°N, 25.852°E
A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck 9 km NNW of Amorgós, Greece on Tuesday, June 23, 1908, 16:01:59 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.1 on May 17, 1908.
- Magnitude
- 5.5
- Moderate · 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
3 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/5 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 6 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
217 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Aegean Sea and Anatolian 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 75 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 75 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:
- 7.9Southern GreeceAugust 11, 1903 · 274 km W of this epicenter
- 6.14 km SE of Megálo Chorió, GreeceAugust 11, 1904 · 118 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.125 km NW of Kastrí, GreeceMay 17, 1908 · 278 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.511 km ESE of Kímolos, GreeceJune 23, 1908 · 104 km W of this epicenter
- 5.520 km WSW of Mílos, GreeceJune 23, 1908 · 148 km W of this epicenter
- 5.358 km S of Tympáki, GreeceJune 17, 1906 · 283 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 47 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 30,801 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1883M7.3
Ayvalik, Izmir, Cesme
15 Oct 1883 · 157 km away · intensity X
15,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1881M7.3
Khios; Turkey: Cesme
3 Apr 1881 · 153 km away · intensity XI
7,866 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1810
Crete: Iraklion (Candia)
16 Feb 1810 · 175 km away · intensity X
3,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1750
Morea,Cerigo
7 Jun 1750 · 267 km away · intensity X
2,000 deaths
- 1899M6.7
Sultanhisar,Atca,Nazilli,Kuyucak,Denizli
20 Sep 1899 · 287 km away · intensity IX
1,117 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1856
Crete; Egypt
12 Oct 1856 · 157 km away · intensity XI
600 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.