Reviewed by USGSIndonesia2y ago
M4.2 earthquake 287 km W of Tual, Indonesia
Tuesday, February 20, 2024, 14:53:25 UTC · 6.056°S, 130.192°E
A magnitude 4.2 earthquake struck 287 km W of Tual, Indonesia on Tuesday, February 20, 2024, 14:53:25 UTC, at a depth of 21.6 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 4.2
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 22 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
30 tons of TNT
That is about 1/500 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 16 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
62 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: shallow
22 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 8 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.9 on February 26, 2024. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 4.6291 km W of Tual, Indonesia2y ago · 6 km NW of this epicenter
- 4.5Banda Sea2y ago · 47 km SW of this epicenter
- 4.0248 km WSW of Tual, Indonesia2y ago · 41 km E of this epicenter
- 4.5279 km W of Tual, Indonesia2y ago · 24 km N of this epicenter
- 4.6282 km WSW of Tual, Indonesia2y ago · 44 km S of this epicenter
- 4.9238 km W of Tual, Indonesia2y ago · 49 km E of this epicenter
- 4.3292 km WSW of Tual, Indonesia2y ago · 29 km S of this epicenter
- 4.4266 km W of Tual, Indonesia2y ago · 23 km NE of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 1,564 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.51938 Banda Sea EarthquakeFebruary 1, 1938 · 193 km NE of this epicenter
- 8.11963 Banda Sea EarthquakeNovember 4, 1963 · 119 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.7Banda SeaNovember 2, 1950 · 140 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.6Pulau Pulau Tanimbar, IndonesiaJanuary 9, 2023 · 113 km S of this epicenter
- 7.6196 km S of Ambon, IndonesiaJanuary 27, 2006 · 237 km W of this epicenter
- 7.5273 km WSW of Tual, IndonesiaJune 3, 1927 · 89 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.355 km S of Ambon, IndonesiaOctober 8, 1950 · 300 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.3281 km WSW of Tual, IndonesiaDecember 20, 1992 · 63 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 20 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 70 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1852M8.3
Maluku: Bandanaira
25 Nov 1852 · 102 km away · intensity IX
60 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1763
Bandaneira
12 Sep 1763 · 22 km away · intensity X
7 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1711M7.0
Banda Sea
5 Sep 1711 · 264 km away
2 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 2023M7.6
Banda Sea
9 Jan 2023 · 112 km away · intensity V
1 deathModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1710
Bandaneira
6 Mar 1710 · 173 km away · intensity IX
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1938M8.6
New Guinea
1 Feb 1938 · 193 km away · intensity VI
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.