QuakeScout
Magnitude5.3

Reviewed by USGSPapua New Guinea2d ago

M5.3 earthquake 72 km NW of Finschhafen, Papua New Guinea

Thursday, September 24, 2026, 23:30:28 UTC · 6.086°S, 147.393°E

A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck 72 km NW of Finschhafen, Papua New Guinea on Thursday, September 24, 2026, 23:30:28 UTC, at a depth of 53.6 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.4 on September 20, 2026.

Magnitude
5.3
Moderate · mww
Depth
54 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

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

85 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the South Bismarck and Woodlark plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.

Depth: shallow

54 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 has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km since this event.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 1,407 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 8.01906 Papua New Guinea EarthquakeSeptember 14, 1906 · 27 km SW of this epicenter
  2. 7.638 km NW of Finschhafen, Papua New GuineaOctober 2, 1906 · 34 km SE of this epicenter
  3. 7.670 km E of Kainantu, Papua New GuineaSeptember 10, 2022 · 101 km W of this epicenter
  4. 7.548 km NW of Finschhafen, Papua New GuineaMay 12, 1938 · 24 km SE of this epicenter
  5. 7.549 km WSW of Wau, Papua New GuineaFebruary 26, 1963 · 200 km SW of this epicenter
  6. 7.532 km SSW of Kimbe, Papua New GuineaDecember 28, 1945 · 294 km E of this epicenter
  7. 7.492 km WSW of Kandrian, Papua New GuineaMay 6, 1947 · 157 km E of this epicenter
  8. 7.463 km W of Kimbe, Papua New GuineaApril 5, 1999 · 247 km E of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 30 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 213 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1988M4.3

    Kaiapit (Landslide Generated)

    6 Sep 1988 · 129 km away

    74 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)

  2. 1993M6.9

    Eastern: Upper Markham Valley

    13 Oct 1993 · 153 km away

    60 deaths$5 million damage

  3. 2002M5.3

    Morobe

    1 Apr 2002 · 12 km away

    36 deaths

  4. 2022M7.6

    Morobe, Eastern Highlands

    10 Sep 2022 · 101 km away · intensity VIII

    21 deaths$15 million damage

  5. 1970M7.3

    Madang

    31 Oct 1970 · 250 km away · intensity VIII

    18 deaths$2 million damagetsunami

  6. 1987M7.6

    Huon Peninsula, Umboi Island

    8 Feb 1987 · 33 km away · intensity VII

    3 deaths$3 million damagetsunami

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

Nearby trackers

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