QuakeScout
Magnitude4.5

Reviewed by USGSNew Zealand4y ago

M4.5 earthquake in Kermadec Islands, New Zealand

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, 15:39:26 UTC · 30.596°S, 178.306°W

A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck in Kermadec Islands, New Zealand on Wednesday, April 13, 2022, 15:39:26 UTC, at a depth of 95.6 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.8 on April 11, 2022.

Magnitude
4.5
Light · mb
Depth
96 km
Intermediate
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

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

92 km

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

Depth: intermediate

96 km

Intermediate-depth earthquakes usually break inside a plate that is sinking into the mantle. Shaking spreads over a wide area but is gentler at the epicenter than a shallow quake of the same size.

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 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.1 on May 11, 2022. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

M3M4M51h6h1d3d7d14d30dMainshock M4.5
Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.
  1. 5.1Kermadec Islands, New Zealand4y ago · 30 km NE of this epicenter
  2. 4.8Kermadec Islands, New Zealand4y ago · 27 km E of this epicenter

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 2,564 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 8.21917 Kermadec Islands, New Zealand EarthquakeMay 1, 1917 · 171 km SE of this epicenter
  2. 8.12021 Kermadec Islands, New Zealand EarthquakeMarch 4, 2021 · 138 km NE of this epicenter
  3. 8.01976 Kermadec Islands, New Zealand EarthquakeJanuary 14, 1976 · 249 km N of this epicenter
  4. 7.6Kermadec Islands regionJuly 6, 2011 · 223 km NE of this epicenter
  5. 7.5Kermadec Islands, New ZealandNovember 16, 1917 · 94 km NE of this epicenter
  6. 7.4Kermadec Islands, New ZealandMarch 4, 2021 · 112 km NE of this epicenter
  7. 7.4Kermadec Islands regionOctober 21, 2011 · 268 km NE of this epicenter
  8. 7.4Kermadec Islands regionMay 16, 2006 · 165 km SW of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 17 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:

  1. 1976M7.9

    Kermadec Islands

    14 Jan 1976 · 177 km away

    Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami

  2. 1968M7.3

    S Of, Raoul

    25 Jul 1968 · 24 km away

    Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami

  3. 2021M8.1

    Sse Of Raoul Island

    4 Mar 2021 · 138 km away · intensity IX

    tsunami

  4. 1917M8.0

    Kermadec Islands

    1 May 1917 · 200 km away

    tsunami

  5. 1976M7.8

    Kermadec Islands

    14 Jan 1976 · 128 km away · intensity VIII

  6. 1959M7.7

    Kermadec Islands

    14 Sep 1959 · 265 km away

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

Nearby trackers

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