Reviewed by USGSItaly65y ago
M5.4 earthquake 3 km W of Ariano Irpino-Martiri, Italy
Tuesday, August 21, 1962, 18:44:56 UTC · 41.158°N, 15.065°E
A magnitude 5.4 earthquake struck 3 km W of Ariano Irpino-Martiri, Italy on Tuesday, August 21, 1962, 18:44:56 UTC, at a depth of 20.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.2 on August 21, 1962.
- Magnitude
- 5.4
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 20 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
2 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/9 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 3 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
268 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Eurasian and African plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
20 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 51 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.25 km W of San Nicolò, ItalySeptember 8, 1905 · 287 km S of this epicenter
- 6.74 km WNW of San Benedetto dei Marsi, ItalyJanuary 13, 1915 · 157 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.63 km SSW of Bisaccia Nuova, ItalyJuly 23, 1930 · 30 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.572 km WSW of Cittadella del Capo, ItalyAugust 1, 1910 · 200 km S of this epicenter
- 6.24 km ENE of Baška Voda, CroatiaJanuary 11, 1962 · 293 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.23 km SW of Montecalvo Irpino, ItalyAugust 21, 1962 · 5 km W of this epicenter
- 6.2CroatiaJanuary 7, 1962 · 283 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.025 km W of San Marco, ItalyJuly 7, 1915 · 104 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 81 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 119,125 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1703
Central Apennino, Norcia, L'Aquila, Perugia
14 Jan 1703 · 243 km away · intensity XI
40,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1915M7.5
Marsica, Avezzano, Abruzzi
13 Jan 1915 · 160 km away · intensity XI
29,978 deaths$60 million damage
- 1857M6.5
Campania, Potenza
16 Dec 1857 · 124 km away · intensity X
10,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1703M6.7
L'Aquila (Aquila)
2 Feb 1703 · 212 km away · intensity XI
10,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1857
Calabria,Montemurro
16 Sep 1857 · 226 km away
10,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1805
Molise, Rosolone, Napoli (Naples), Isernia
26 Jul 1805 · 31 km away · intensity XI
5,600 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.