Reviewed by USGS12y ago
M4.6 earthquake in South Sandwich Islands region
Tuesday, October 14, 2014, 07:50:21 UTC · 56.087°S, 27.534°W
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck in South Sandwich Islands region on Tuesday, October 14, 2014, 07:50:21 UTC, at a depth of 119.0 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.6 on October 14, 2014.
- Magnitude
- 4.6
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 119 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
120 tons of TNT
That is about 1/126 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 4 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
99 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Sandwich and South American plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: intermediate
119 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 6 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.8 on November 11, 2014. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 4.8South Sandwich Islands region12y ago · 20 km E of this epicenter
- 4.2South Sandwich Islands region12y ago · 7 km S of this epicenter
- 4.4South Sandwich Islands region12y ago · 48 km SE of this epicenter
- 4.1South Sandwich Islands region12y ago · 43 km NW of this epicenter
- 4.4South Sandwich Islands region12y ago · 46 km NW of this epicenter
- 4.2South Sandwich Islands region12y ago · 42 km NW of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 1,024 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.11929 South Sandwich Islands EarthquakeJune 27, 1929 · 138 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.8South Sandwich Islands regionMay 26, 1964 · 27 km S of this epicenter
- 7.2South Sandwich Islands regionDecember 27, 1991 · 141 km E of this epicenter
- 7.1South Sandwich Islands regionSeptember 8, 1961 · 30 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.9South Sandwich Islands regionAugust 18, 1930 · 43 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.9South Sandwich Islands regionSeptember 13, 1921 · 87 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.9South Sandwich Islands regionSeptember 6, 2004 · 120 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.9South Sandwich Islands regionJune 29, 2014 · 86 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 3 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1929M8.1
South Sandwich Islands
27 Jun 1929 · 138 km away
- 1961M7.7
South Sandwich Islands
5 Sep 1961 · 215 km away
- 1961M7.7
South Sandwich Islands
8 Sep 1961 · 25 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.