QuakeScout
Magnitude5.2

Reviewed by USGSFiji40y ago

M5.2 earthquake 233 km S of Suva, Fiji

Thursday, June 5, 1986, 00:17:48 UTC · 20.208°S, 178.869°E

A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 233 km S of Suva, Fiji on Thursday, June 5, 1986, 00:17:48 UTC, at a depth of 536.4 km (deep). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.5 on May 26, 1986.

Magnitude
5.2
Moderate · mw
Depth
536 km
Deep
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: 75 km aftershock search area

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

951 tons of TNT

That is about 1/16 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 2 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

306 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Australian and Conway Reef plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.

Depth: deep

536 km

Deep earthquakes (over 300 km) happen deep inside subducting plates. They rarely cause damage, but can be felt faintly over very large distances.

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 75 km

USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.9 on June 9, 1986. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

M3M4M51h6h1d3d7d14d30dMainshock M5.2
Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.
  1. 4.9233 km SSE of Suva, Fiji40y ago · 1 km E of this epicenter

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 291 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 7.4Fiji regionSeptember 28, 1957 · 292 km E of this epicenter
  2. 7.3Fiji regionMay 25, 1944 · 233 km SE of this epicenter
  3. 7.2Fiji regionOctober 9, 1967 · 229 km SE of this epicenter
  4. 7.2south of the Fiji IslandsFebruary 10, 1969 · 288 km S of this epicenter
  5. 7.1Fiji regionFebruary 25, 1915 · 249 km SE of this epicenter
  6. 7.1Fiji regionJanuary 27, 1948 · 269 km E of this epicenter
  7. 7.1Fiji regionMay 4, 1924 · 274 km SE of this epicenter
  8. 7.1230 km S of Suva, FijiMay 26, 1986 · 2 km NW of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 5 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 48 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1840

    Kadavu

    1840 · 162 km away · intensity VIII

    40 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)

  2. 1953M6.4

    Fiji Islands

    14 Sep 1953 · 223 km away

    8 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami

  3. 1932M6.4

    Koro,Mudu,Suvasavu

    8 Mar 1932 · 242 km away · intensity VII

    Moderate damage ($1–5M)

  4. 1957M7.5

    Fiji Islands

    28 Sep 1957 · 275 km away

  5. 1975M4.9

    Fiji Islands

    16 Dec 1975 · 176 km away

    tsunami

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

Nearby trackers

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