QuakeScout
Magnitude5.1

Reviewed by USGSIndonesia40y ago

M5.1 earthquake 148 km SE of Tondano, Indonesia

Saturday, September 13, 1986, 17:45:22 UTC · 0.350°N, 125.844°E

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck 148 km SE of Tondano, Indonesia on Saturday, September 13, 1986, 17:45:22 UTC, at a depth of 33.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.8 on September 11, 1986.

Magnitude
5.1
Moderate · mb
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 earthquake

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

674 tons of TNT

That is about 1/22 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 1 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

17 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Molucca Sea and Sunda 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 75 km

USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the 30 days after this event.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 723 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 7.7148 km SE of Tondano, IndonesiaMay 14, 1932 · 6 km NE of this epicenter
  2. 7.7121 km E of Bitung, IndonesiaAugust 10, 1968 · 132 km N of this epicenter
  3. 7.564 km NNW of Ternate, IndonesiaJune 25, 1907 · 185 km NE of this epicenter
  4. 7.5146 km NW of Ternate, IndonesiaAugust 14, 1986 · 177 km NE of this epicenter
  5. 7.3108 km SE of Tondano, IndonesiaMay 5, 1908 · 44 km NW of this epicenter
  6. 7.2182 km WNW of Tobelo, IndonesiaOctober 10, 1938 · 240 km N of this epicenter
  7. 7.1129 km WNW of Ternate, IndonesiaMay 3, 1925 · 110 km NE of this epicenter
  8. 7.1197 km SSE of Sofifi, IndonesiaApril 16, 1963 · 288 km SE of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 18 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 159 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1845M7.0

    N Sulawesi: Menado, Tikala, Tomohon

    8 Feb 1845 · 167 km away · intensity IX

    118 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

  2. 1855

    Maluku: Ternate Island

    14 Jul 1855 · 169 km away · intensity IX

    34 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)

  3. 1932M7.7

    Sulawesi: Kakas,Langowan,Poso,Tondano

    14 May 1932 · 6 km away · intensity VII

    7 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  4. 1858M7.3

    N. Moluccas Islands

    13 Dec 1858 · 74 km away

    Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  5. 1889M8.0

    N. Moluccas Islands

    6 Sep 1889 · 85 km away

    Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

  6. 1859M7.3

    Sulawesi

    29 Jul 1859 · 54 km away

    Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

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

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