QuakeScout
Magnitude4.9

Reviewed by USGS6y ago

M4.9 earthquake south of the Kermadec Islands

Wednesday, September 16, 2020, 15:08:24 UTC · 33.236°S, 178.968°W

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck south of the Kermadec Islands on Wednesday, September 16, 2020, 15:08:24 UTC, at a depth of 28.6 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.0 on September 13, 2020.

Magnitude
4.9
Light · mb
Depth
29 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

338 tons of TNT

That is about 1/45 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 1 times more energy.

Tectonic setting

97 km

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

Depth: shallow

29 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 lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.4 on September 29, 2020. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

M3M4M51h6h1d3d7d14d30dMainshock M4.9
Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.
  1. 4.4south of the Kermadec Islands6y ago · 6 km SW of this epicenter

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 1,391 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 7.4south of the Kermadec IslandsJune 18, 2020 · 104 km E of this epicenter
  2. 7.4Kermadec Islands regionMay 16, 2006 · 162 km N of this epicenter
  3. 7.3Kermadec Islands, New ZealandJuly 25, 1968 · 282 km N of this epicenter
  4. 7.3Kermadec Islands, New ZealandJune 15, 2019 · 300 km N of this epicenter
  5. 7.1south of the Kermadec IslandsMay 25, 1997 · 170 km NW of this epicenter
  6. 7.0Kermadec Islands, New ZealandMay 20, 1968 · 281 km N of this epicenter
  7. 6.9Kermadec Islands, New ZealandMay 20, 1968 · 287 km N of this epicenter
  8. 6.9Kermadec Islands regionMay 3, 1997 · 165 km N of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 4 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:

  1. 1968M7.3

    S Of, Raoul

    25 Jul 1968 · 276 km away

    Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami

  2. 2020M7.4

    S Of, Raoul

    18 Jun 2020 · 104 km away · intensity VII

    tsunami

  3. 2019M7.2

    S Of, Raoul

    15 Jun 2019 · 283 km away

    tsunami

  4. 2013M6.5

    S Of, Raoul

    30 Sep 2013 · 264 km away

    tsunami

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

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