Reviewed by USGSIran97y ago
M5.3 earthquake 16 km ENE of Khowy, Iran
Thursday, May 8, 1930, 05:29:33 UTC · 38.587°N, 45.136°E
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck 16 km ENE of Khowy, Iran on Thursday, May 8, 1930, 05:29:33 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.1 on May 6, 1930.
- Magnitude
- 5.3
- 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 75 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
1 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/11 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 3 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
183 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Eurasian and Arabian 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 lists 6 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.2 on May 8, 1930. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 5.629 km SE of Khowy, Iran97y ago · 28 km S of this epicenter
- 5.717 km NNW of Salmās, Iran97y ago · 50 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.534 km ESE of Salmās, Iran97y ago · 62 km S of this epicenter
- 5.25 km WSW of Salmās, Iran97y ago · 59 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.219 km ENE of Salmās, Iran97y ago · 39 km S of this epicenter
- 6.213 km SE of Khowy, Iran97y ago · 16 km SW of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 14 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.110 km SSW of Salmās, IranMay 6, 1930 · 64 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.91 km SW of Amasia, ArmeniaOctober 22, 1926 · 287 km NW of this epicenter
- 5.83 km W of Stepanavan, ArmeniaOctober 12, 1912 · 277 km N of this epicenter
- 5.78 km N of Başkale, TurkeyApril 25, 1918 · 112 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.711 km NW of Ahlat, TurkeyJanuary 27, 1913 · 240 km W of this epicenter
- 5.625 km NNE of Eleşkirt, TurkeyMay 13, 1924 · 257 km NW of this epicenter
- 5.57 km ENE of Vurğun, AzerbaijanOctober 20, 1906 · 285 km N of this epicenter
- 5.56 km NNE of Salmās, IranMay 6, 1930 · 48 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 32 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 189,933 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1727
Tabriz
18 Nov 1727 · 121 km away · intensity VIII
77,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1780M7.7
Tabriz
8 Jan 1780 · 114 km away · intensity IX
50,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1721M7.7
Tabriz
26 Apr 1721 · 156 km away
40,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1779M6.5
Tabriz
27 Dec 1779 · 151 km away · intensity VII
10,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1903M6.3
Malazgirt
28 Apr 1903 · 235 km away · intensity X
3,560 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1930M7.1
Salmas
6 May 1930 · 62 km away · intensity IX
2,539 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.