Reviewed by USGSGreece46y ago
M3.8 earthquake 12 km SW of Vília, Greece
Tuesday, May 12, 1981, 09:22:30 UTC · 38.085°N, 23.242°E
A magnitude 3.8 earthquake struck 12 km SW of Vília, Greece on Tuesday, May 12, 1981, 09:22:30 UTC, at a depth of 33.0 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 3.8
- Minor · ml
- Depth
- 33 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
8 tons of TNT
That is about 1/1,992 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 63 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
49 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Aegean Sea and Eurasian plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
33 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 7 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.1 on May 31, 1981. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 3.81 km S of Árma, Greece45y ago · 36 km NE of this epicenter
- 3.63 km SW of Thespiés, Greece45y ago · 24 km NW of this epicenter
- 3.63 km W of Vília, Greece45y ago · 11 km NE of this epicenter
- 4.1Greece45y ago · 5 km NE of this epicenter
- 3.53 km WSW of Vília, Greece46y ago · 9 km NE of this epicenter
- 3.513 km NE of Perachóra, Greece46y ago · 16 km W of this epicenter
- 3.85 km E of Vágia, Greece46y ago · 25 km N of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 409 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.9Southern GreeceAugust 11, 1903 · 233 km S of this epicenter
- 7.719 km SSE of Amorgós, GreeceJuly 9, 1956 · 287 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.34 km WNW of Koróni, GreeceOctober 6, 1947 · 184 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.2Aegean SeaNovember 8, 1905 · 253 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.29 km NNW of Karaburun, TurkeyJuly 23, 1949 · 291 km E of this epicenter
- 7.055 km S of Mýrina, GreeceFebruary 19, 1968 · 208 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.97 km NNE of Ágios Nikólaos, GreeceSeptember 26, 1932 · 251 km N of this epicenter
- 6.815 km ENE of Póros, GreeceAugust 12, 1953 · 201 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 144 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 28,309 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1883M7.3
Ayvalik, Izmir, Cesme
15 Oct 1883 · 260 km away · intensity X
15,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1881M7.3
Khios; Turkey: Cesme
3 Apr 1881 · 264 km away · intensity XI
7,866 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1750
Morea,Cerigo
7 Jun 1750 · 211 km away · intensity X
2,000 deaths
- 1953M7.2
Lixouri-Argostoli (Kephallenia)
12 Aug 1953 · 215 km away · intensity X
476 deaths$100 million damagetsunami
- 1820M6.9
Zakinthos (Zante)
29 Dec 1820 · 179 km away · intensity X
388 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1886M6.8
Triphylie (Peleponese), Philiatra
27 Aug 1886 · 175 km away · intensity X
326 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.