M5.6 earthquake 74 km ESE of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea

Saturday, September 26, 2026, 14:08:17 UTC · 4.695°S, 152.838°E

A magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck 74 km ESE of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea on Saturday, September 26, 2026, 14:08:17 UTC, at a depth of 57.8 km (shallow). USGS received 1 “Did You Feel It?” report, with a maximum reported intensity of II (weak). The USGS PAGER alert is green: low likelihood of casualties and damage. It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.0 on September 16, 2025.

Magnitude: 5.6; Moderate · mww
Depth: 58 km; Shallow
Felt reports: 1; Max intensity II
Est. shaking: IV; Light (ShakeMap)
PAGER alert: Green; Impact estimate
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

4 kilotons of TNT

That is about 1/4 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 8 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

14 km

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

Depth: shallow

58 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
Namatanai, New Ireland, Papua New Guinea	II · Weak	1	135 km

I felt it — report to USGS ↗

USGS PAGER estimate

Who was exposed to shaking

Modelled from the ShakeMap and population data. Alert level green: low likelihood of casualties and damage.

IV · Light shaking: 198,000 people
III · Weak shaking: 176,000 people

Estimated shaking in nearby towns

KokopoPopulation 20,000IV · Light
KeravatPopulation 1,000IV · Light
RabaulPopulation 7,000III · Weak

After the main event

Aftershocks within 75 km

USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km since this event; the largest was M4.9 on September 26, 2026. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.

4.978 km ESE of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea3h ago · 10 km NE of this epicenter

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 2,965 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 47 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 529 recorded deaths. The most severe:

1937
Keravia, Rabaul, Kokopo
28 May 1937 · 85 km away · intensity VIII
507 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
1983M6.4
Ulawun, Rabaul
22 Dec 1983 · 132 km away · intensity V
10 deaths$25 million damage
1941M7.4
Bismarck Sea
13 Jan 1941 · 103 km away
4 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
1971M7.9
New Ireland: Bougainville
14 Jul 1971 · 148 km away · intensity IX
3 deathsUnder $1 million damagetsunami
2000M8.0
New Ireland, Duke Of York
16 Nov 2000 · 96 km away
2 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
1985M7.1
New Britain: Bialla, Piona
10 May 1985 · 223 km away · intensity VIII
1 death$1 million damage

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

Nearby trackers