Reviewed by USGS5y ago
M4.5 earthquake in Kermadec Islands region
Monday, June 14, 2021, 09:06:23 UTC · 31.436°S, 177.759°W
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck in Kermadec Islands region on Monday, June 14, 2021, 09:06:23 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.5 on June 14, 2021.
- Magnitude
- 4.5
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 10 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
85 tons of TNT
That is about 1/178 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 6 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
56 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
10 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 2,384 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.21917 Kermadec Islands, New Zealand EarthquakeMay 1, 1917 · 108 km E of this epicenter
- 8.12021 Kermadec Islands, New Zealand EarthquakeMarch 4, 2021 · 196 km N of this epicenter
- 7.6Kermadec Islands regionJuly 6, 2011 · 251 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.5Kermadec Islands, New ZealandNovember 16, 1917 · 177 km N of this epicenter
- 7.4Kermadec Islands, New ZealandMarch 4, 2021 · 196 km N of this epicenter
- 7.4south of the Kermadec IslandsJune 18, 2020 · 207 km S of this epicenter
- 7.4Kermadec Islands regionMay 16, 2006 · 152 km W of this epicenter
- 7.3Kermadec Islands regionSeptember 14, 1959 · 293 km N of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 15 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1976M7.9
Kermadec Islands
14 Jan 1976 · 252 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1968M7.3
S Of, Raoul
25 Jul 1968 · 93 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 2021M8.1
Sse Of Raoul Island
4 Mar 2021 · 194 km away · intensity IX
tsunami
- 1917M8.0
Kermadec Islands
1 May 1917 · 259 km away
tsunami
- 1976M7.8
Kermadec Islands
14 Jan 1976 · 176 km away · intensity VIII
- 1978M7.7
S Of
9 Feb 1978 · 92 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.