Reviewed by USGSIran97y ago
M5.0 earthquake 28 km WNW of Ahar, Iran
Friday, May 9, 1930, 01:43:15 UTC · 38.618°N, 46.793°E
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 28 km WNW of Ahar, Iran on Friday, May 9, 1930, 01:43:15 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.2 on May 8, 1930.
- Magnitude
- 5.0
- 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
548 tons of TNT
That is about 1/28 of the Hiroshima bomb. Each whole step in magnitude is about 32 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
294 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 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.1 on May 21, 1930. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 15 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 · 189 km W of this epicenter
- 6.213 km SE of Khowy, IranMay 8, 1930 · 152 km W of this epicenter
- 6.015 km NE of Prishibinskoye, AzerbaijanFebruary 19, 1924 · 181 km E of this epicenter
- 5.78 km N of Başkale, TurkeyApril 25, 1918 · 250 km W of this epicenter
- 5.57 km ENE of Vurğun, AzerbaijanOctober 20, 1906 · 299 km N of this epicenter
- 5.56 km NNE of Salmās, IranMay 6, 1930 · 179 km W of this epicenter
- 5.4northwestern IranMarch 24, 1928 · 172 km SE of this epicenter
- 5.444 km SSE of Meghri, ArmeniaApril 10, 1907 · 37 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 29 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 187,906 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1727
Tabriz
18 Nov 1727 · 81 km away · intensity VIII
77,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1780M7.7
Tabriz
8 Jan 1780 · 86 km away · intensity IX
50,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1721M7.7
Tabriz
26 Apr 1721 · 80 km away
40,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1779M6.5
Tabriz
27 Dec 1779 · 69 km away · intensity VII
10,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1930M7.1
Salmas
6 May 1930 · 184 km away · intensity IX
2,539 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1902M6.9
Semacha; N Iran
13 Feb 1902 · 278 km away · intensity IX
2,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.