Reviewed by USGS3y ago
M5.3 earthquake in South Sandwich Islands region
Saturday, November 19, 2022, 17:10:28 UTC · 59.817°S, 26.516°W
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck in South Sandwich Islands region on Saturday, November 19, 2022, 17:10:28 UTC, at a depth of 84.4 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.1 on November 2, 2022.
- Magnitude
- 5.3
- Moderate · mww
- Depth
- 84 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: 75 km aftershock search area
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
26 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Australian and Antarctic plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: intermediate
84 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 75 km
USGS lists 13 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.2 on December 15, 2022. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 5.0South Sandwich Islands region3y ago · 46 km NE of this epicenter
- 4.8South Sandwich Islands region3y ago · 23 km SE of this epicenter
- 5.2South Sandwich Islands region3y ago · 34 km SW of this epicenter
- 4.6South Sandwich Islands region3y ago · 30 km NE of this epicenter
- 4.5South Sandwich Islands region3y ago · 67 km SW of this epicenter
- 4.9South Sandwich Islands region3y ago · 58 km SW of this epicenter
- 4.6South Sandwich Islands region3y ago · 68 km NE of this epicenter
- 4.3South Sandwich Islands region3y ago · 71 km SE of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 1,112 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.12021 South Sandwich Islands EarthquakeAugust 12, 2021 · 176 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.5South Sandwich Islands regionAugust 12, 2021 · 264 km N of this epicenter
- 7.5South Sandwich Islands regionAugust 28, 1933 · 58 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.4east of the South Sandwich IslandsJanuary 2, 2006 · 298 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.3South Sandwich Islands regionSeptember 1, 1961 · 62 km N of this epicenter
- 7.3South Sandwich Islands regionJuly 15, 2013 · 140 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.2South Sandwich Islands regionNovember 15, 1910 · 165 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.2South Sandwich Islands regionOctober 22, 1983 · 111 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 5 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 2021M8.1
South Sandwich Islands
12 Aug 2021 · 170 km away
tsunami
- 1961M7.7
South Sandwich Islands
5 Sep 1961 · 204 km away
- 1961M7.5
South Sandwich Islands
1 Sep 1961 · 56 km away
- 1973M7.5
Antarctica
6 Oct 1973 · 295 km away
- 2021M7.5
South Sandwich Islands
12 Aug 2021 · 259 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.