Reviewed by USGS7y ago
M4.2 earthquake in Fiji region
Sunday, February 3, 2019, 08:59:53 UTC · 19.082°S, 177.374°W
A magnitude 4.2 earthquake struck in Fiji region on Sunday, February 3, 2019, 08:59:53 UTC, at a depth of 584.4 km (deep).
- Magnitude
- 4.2
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 584 km
- Deep
- 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: 50 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
30 tons of TNT
That is about 1/500 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 16 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
85 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Niuafo'ou and Australian plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: deep
584 km
Deep earthquakes (over 300 km) happen deep inside subducting plates. They rarely cause damage, but can be felt faintly over very large distances.
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 50 km
USGS lists 3 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.3 on February 22, 2019. 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 1,918 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.22018 Fiji EarthquakeAugust 19, 2018 · 135 km NW of this epicenter
- 8.0TongaJanuary 4, 1903 · 269 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.8159 km W of Pangai, TongaDecember 14, 1950 · 172 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.8Fiji regionJanuary 1, 1919 · 79 km W of this epicenter
- 7.6178 km E of Levuka, FijiFebruary 22, 1909 · 198 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.6240 km E of Levuka, FijiMarch 9, 1994 · 160 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.5262 km WNW of Haveluloto, TongaMay 21, 1962 · 112 km S of this epicenter
- 7.4227 km E of Levuka, FijiAugust 21, 1910 · 188 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 9 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 2018M8.2
Fiji Islands
19 Aug 2018 · 135 km away · intensity V
tsunami
- 1937M8.1
Fiji Islands
16 Apr 1937 · 272 km away
- 1903M8.0
Tonga Islands
4 Jan 1903 · 269 km away
- 1909M7.8
Fiji Islands
22 Feb 1909 · 209 km away
- 1919M7.8
Fiji Islands
1 Jan 1919 · 79 km away
tsunami
- 1950M7.7
Tonga Islands
14 Dec 1950 · 151 km away · intensity VI
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.