Reviewed by USGSGreece44y ago
M4.2 earthquake 84 km WSW of Lithakiá, Greece
Sunday, March 6, 1983, 03:38:07 UTC · 37.414°N, 19.952°E
A magnitude 4.2 earthquake struck 84 km WSW of Lithakiá, Greece on Sunday, March 6, 1983, 03:38:07 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 4.2
- Light · ml
- Depth
- 10 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
47 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Aegean Sea and African plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
10 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 5 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.3 on March 8, 1983. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 4.055 km SW of Lixoúri, Greece44y ago · 45 km N of this epicenter
- 3.963 km WSW of Katastárion, Greece44y ago · 28 km NE of this epicenter
- 4.074 km SW of Lixoúri, Greece44y ago · 30 km N of this epicenter
- 3.856 km SW of Lixoúri, Greece44y ago · 48 km N of this epicenter
- 4.361 km SW of Lixoúri, Greece44y ago · 37 km N of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 301 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.34 km WNW of Koróni, GreeceOctober 6, 1947 · 187 km E of this epicenter
- 7.026 km SW of Lixoúri, GreeceJanuary 17, 1983 · 72 km N of this epicenter
- 6.815 km ENE of Póros, GreeceAugust 12, 1953 · 122 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.86 km SW of Galaxídhion, GreeceMarch 31, 1965 · 232 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.7Ionian SeaNovember 15, 1959 · 72 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.75 km SW of Domvraína, GreeceFebruary 24, 1981 · 277 km E of this epicenter
- 6.77 km NE of Anávra, GreeceApril 30, 1954 · 279 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.635 km NW of Itháki, GreeceApril 22, 1948 · 136 km N of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 109 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,944 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1953M7.2
Lixouri-Argostoli (Kephallenia)
12 Aug 1953 · 123 km away · intensity X
476 deaths$100 million damagetsunami
- 1820M6.9
Zakinthos (Zante)
29 Dec 1820 · 120 km away · intensity X
388 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1886M6.8
Triphylie (Peleponese), Philiatra
27 Aug 1886 · 159 km away · intensity X
326 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1767M6.7
Kefalonia
11 Jul 1767 · 105 km away · intensity X
303 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1867M7.2
Cephalonia
4 Feb 1867 · 100 km away · intensity X
223 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1817M6.6
Achaia: Aeghion
23 Aug 1817 · 222 km away · intensity X
128 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.