Reviewed by USGSIndonesia38y ago
M4.4 earthquake 178 km WNW of Tobelo, Indonesia
Wednesday, March 15, 1989, 10:55:08 UTC · 2.137°N, 126.459°E
A magnitude 4.4 earthquake struck 178 km WNW of Tobelo, Indonesia on Wednesday, March 15, 1989, 10:55:08 UTC, at a depth of 121.5 km (intermediate).
- Magnitude
- 4.4
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 122 km
- Intermediate
- 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
60 tons of TNT
That is about 1/251 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 8 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
24 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Birds Head and Sunda plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: intermediate
122 km
Intermediate-depth earthquakes usually break inside a plate that is sinking into the mantle. Shaking spreads over a wide area but is gentler at the epicenter than a shallow quake of the same size.
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 3 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.0 on March 20, 1989. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 1,034 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.8161 km SE of Sarangani, PhilippinesApril 1, 1936 · 237 km N of this epicenter
- 7.790 km NE of Tobelo, IndonesiaSeptember 8, 1966 · 227 km E of this epicenter
- 7.7148 km SE of Tondano, IndonesiaMay 14, 1932 · 205 km S of this epicenter
- 7.7121 km E of Bitung, IndonesiaAugust 10, 1968 · 78 km S of this epicenter
- 7.6101 km SE of Sarangani, PhilippinesDecember 16, 1910 · 286 km N of this epicenter
- 7.6223 km ESE of Sarangani, PhilippinesJanuary 30, 1969 · 297 km N of this epicenter
- 7.564 km NNW of Ternate, IndonesiaJune 25, 1907 · 120 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.5146 km NW of Ternate, IndonesiaAugust 14, 1986 · 39 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 22 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,965 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1856
Sangihe Pulau (Volcanic)
2 Mar 1856 · 201 km away
2,806 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1845M7.0
N Sulawesi: Menado, Tikala, Tomohon
8 Feb 1845 · 193 km away · intensity IX
118 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1855
Maluku: Ternate Island
14 Jul 1855 · 176 km away · intensity IX
34 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1932M7.7
Sulawesi: Kakas,Langowan,Poso,Tondano
14 May 1932 · 205 km away · intensity VII
7 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1858M7.3
N. Moluccas Islands
13 Dec 1858 · 136 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1989M5.6
Molucca Passage: Morotai, Tanawangu
8 Mar 1989 · 127 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.