Reviewed by USGS3y ago
M4.4 earthquake in Banda Sea
Thursday, June 1, 2023, 07:42:29 UTC · 6.964°S, 129.487°E
A magnitude 4.4 earthquake struck in Banda Sea on Thursday, June 1, 2023, 07:42:29 UTC, at a depth of 176.0 km (intermediate).
- Magnitude
- 4.4
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 176 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
60 tons of TNT
That is about 1/251 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 8 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
58 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Banda Sea and Timor plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: intermediate
176 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 8 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.9 on June 27, 2023. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 4.7Banda Sea3y ago · 3 km NW of this epicenter
- 4.9Kepulauan Babar, Indonesia3y ago · 48 km E of this epicenter
- 4.2292 km ENE of Lospalos, Timor Leste3y ago · 32 km SW of this epicenter
- 4.0Banda Sea3y ago · 35 km N of this epicenter
- 4.3Banda Sea3y ago · 48 km NE of this epicenter
- 4.2Kepulauan Babar, Indonesia3y ago · 25 km S of this epicenter
- 4.2Banda Sea3y ago · 40 km E of this epicenter
- 4.3294 km ENE of Lospalos, Timor Leste3y ago · 30 km W of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 1,508 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.11963 Banda Sea EarthquakeNovember 4, 1963 · 13 km E of this epicenter
- 7.7Banda SeaNovember 2, 1950 · 37 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.6Pulau Pulau Tanimbar, IndonesiaJanuary 9, 2023 · 59 km E of this epicenter
- 7.6196 km S of Ambon, IndonesiaJanuary 27, 2006 · 224 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.5273 km WSW of Tual, IndonesiaJune 3, 1927 · 121 km E of this epicenter
- 7.3145 km NNE of Lospalos, Timor LesteAugust 30, 1917 · 210 km W of this epicenter
- 7.3125 km NNE of Lospalos, Timor LesteDecember 29, 2021 · 220 km W of this epicenter
- 7.3281 km WSW of Tual, IndonesiaDecember 20, 1992 · 109 km NE 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, which together caused about 68 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1852M8.3
Maluku: Bandanaira
25 Nov 1852 · 193 km away · intensity IX
60 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1763
Bandaneira
12 Sep 1763 · 121 km away · intensity X
7 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 2023M7.6
Banda Sea
9 Jan 2023 · 62 km away · intensity V
1 deathModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1710
Bandaneira
6 Mar 1710 · 275 km away · intensity IX
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1975M5.9
Maluku: Bandanaira
15 Jan 1975 · 226 km away · intensity VII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1890
Bandaneira
23 Nov 1890 · 278 km away · intensity VII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.