Reviewed by USGSIndonesia50y ago
M4.6 earthquake 75 km SSE of Meulaboh, Indonesia
Sunday, November 7, 1976, 05:37:45 UTC · 3.484°N, 96.285°E
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 75 km SSE of Meulaboh, Indonesia on Sunday, November 7, 1976, 05:37:45 UTC, at a depth of 26.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.0 on November 3, 1976.
- Magnitude
- 4.6
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 26 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 earthquake
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
37 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Cocos and Nazca plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
26 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 has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 105 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.2The 1907 Sumatra Earthquake and TsunamiJanuary 4, 1907 · 122 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.5209 km WSW of Sinabang, IndonesiaNovember 21, 1969 · 251 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.186 km WSW of Pangkalan Brandan, IndonesiaSeptember 19, 1936 · 145 km E of this epicenter
- 7.040 km NE of Meulaboh, IndonesiaAugust 3, 1935 · 101 km N of this epicenter
- 7.085 km SSE of Meulaboh, IndonesiaJune 20, 1976 · 10 km S of this epicenter
- 6.928 km NNE of Sinabang, IndonesiaNovember 4, 1917 · 90 km S of this epicenter
- 6.975 km WSW of Banda Aceh, IndonesiaAugust 23, 1936 · 263 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.95 km W of Banda Aceh, IndonesiaApril 2, 1964 · 255 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 16 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,219 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1907M8.2
Nw Sumatra: Gunungsitoli, Barus
4 Jan 1907 · 122 km away
2,188 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1936
N Sumatera: Tapanuli, Karo
9 Sep 1936 · 135 km away · intensity VIII
17 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1967M6.1
N Sumatera,Malay Peninsula
12 Apr 1967 · 251 km away
14 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1843M7.3
Sw. Sumatra
5 Jan 1843 · 291 km away · intensity XI
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1964M7.0
Banda Aceh
2 Apr 1964 · 276 km away · intensity VII
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1837M7.3
Banda Atjeh
29 Sep 1837 · 226 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.