Reviewed by USGSBotswana9y ago
M5.0 earthquake 137 km SSW of Letlhakane, Botswana
Wednesday, April 5, 2017, 00:55:50 UTC · 22.565°S, 25.087°E
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 137 km SSW of Letlhakane, Botswana on Wednesday, April 5, 2017, 00:55:50 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow). USGS received 13 “Did You Feel It?” reports, with a maximum reported intensity of V (moderate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.0 on April 3, 2017.
- Magnitude
- 5.0
- Moderate · mb
- Depth
- 10 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 13
- Max intensity V
- Est. shaking
- VI
- Strong (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 75 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
477 tons of TNT
That is about 1/32 of the Hiroshima bomb. Each whole step in magnitude is about 32 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
320 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Somali and African plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
10 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
Reports sent by people to USGS, grouped by place (most reports first). Intensity uses the Modified Mercalli scale (I–X): what people felt, not the magnitude.
| Place | Intensity | Reports | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kedia, Bobonong, Botswana | V · Moderate | 2 | 136 km |
| Gaborone, Gaborone, Botswana | II · Weak | 2 | 245 km |
| Maun, Okavango, Botswana | V · Moderate | 1 | 333 km |
| Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa | III · Weak | 1 | 501 km |
| Letlhakane, Boteti, Botswana | II · Weak | 1 | 137 km |
| Tlokweng, South East, Botswana | II · Weak | 1 | 235 km |
| Molepolole, Kweneng, Botswana | II · Weak | 1 | 208 km |
| Orapa, Orapa, Botswana | II · Weak | 1 | 145 km |
| Lecheng, Serowe-Palapye, Botswana | II · Weak | 1 | 224 km |
| Palapye, Serowe-Palapye, Botswana | II · Weak | 1 | 210 km |
| Mogoditshane Botswana Defence Force, Kweneng, Botswana | I · Not felt | 1 | 245 km |
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 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.7 on April 8, 2017. 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 2 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest: