Reviewed by USGSIndonesia5mo ago
M4.6 earthquake 126 km WNW of Tobelo, Indonesia
Sunday, April 26, 2026, 07:20:42 UTC · 2.361°N, 127.061°E
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 126 km WNW of Tobelo, Indonesia on Sunday, April 26, 2026, 07:20:42 UTC, at a depth of 51.1 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.6 on April 25, 2026.
- Magnitude
- 4.6
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 51 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
120 tons of TNT
That is about 1/126 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 4 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
2 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Sunda and Birds Head plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
51 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 50 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 2,701 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.8161 km SE of Sarangani, PhilippinesApril 1, 1936 · 225 km N of this epicenter
- 7.790 km NE of Tobelo, IndonesiaSeptember 8, 1966 · 159 km E of this epicenter
- 7.7148 km SE of Tondano, IndonesiaMay 14, 1932 · 256 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.7121 km E of Bitung, IndonesiaAugust 10, 1968 · 136 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.6101 km SE of Sarangani, PhilippinesDecember 16, 1910 · 281 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.6223 km ESE of Sarangani, PhilippinesJanuary 30, 1969 · 258 km N of this epicenter
- 7.564 km NNW of Ternate, IndonesiaJune 25, 1907 · 115 km S of this epicenter
- 7.5126 km WNW of Ternate, IndonesiaJanuary 21, 2007 · 168 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 34 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,982 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1856
Sangihe Pulau (Volcanic)
2 Mar 1856 · 226 km away
2,806 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1845M7.0
N Sulawesi: Menado, Tikala, Tomohon
8 Feb 1845 · 264 km away · intensity IX
118 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1855
Maluku: Ternate Island
14 Jul 1855 · 176 km away · intensity IX
34 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1994M7.0
Kau
21 Jan 1994 · 167 km away
9 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1932M7.7
Sulawesi: Kakas,Langowan,Poso,Tondano
14 May 1932 · 256 km away · intensity VII
7 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 2007M7.5
Molucca Islands: N
21 Jan 2007 · 168 km away
4 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.