Reviewed by USGSIndonesia47y ago
M6.8 earthquake 276 km WSW of Sinabang, Indonesia
Saturday, September 29, 1979, 18:37:12 UTC · 1.193°N, 94.245°E
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck 276 km WSW of Sinabang, Indonesia on Saturday, September 29, 1979, 18:37:12 UTC, at a depth of 27.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.5 on November 21, 1969.
- Magnitude
- 6.8
- Strong · ms
- Depth
- 27 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
239 kilotons of TNT
That is about 16 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 501 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
8 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Indian and Australian plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
27 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 100 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 20 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 · 219 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.5209 km WSW of Sinabang, IndonesiaNovember 21, 1969 · 100 km N of this epicenter
- 6.860 km W of Sinabang, IndonesiaNovember 2, 1908 · 233 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.384 km NW of Sinabang, IndonesiaJuly 1, 1937 · 285 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.375 km SSE of Sinabang, IndonesiaApril 2, 1956 · 279 km E of this epicenter
- 6.2134 km SW of Sinabang, IndonesiaMarch 17, 1920 · 153 km E of this epicenter
- 6.133 km SW of Sinabang, IndonesiaDecember 19, 1915 · 244 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.079 km NW of Sinabang, IndonesiaSeptember 22, 1969 · 270 km NE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 2 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,188 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1907M8.2
Nw Sumatra: Gunungsitoli, Barus
4 Jan 1907 · 219 km away
2,188 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1969M7.7
Off Nw Coast Sumatera
21 Nov 1969 · 108 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.