Reviewed by USGSIndonesia38y ago
M5.1 earthquake 119 km NNE of Tobelo, Indonesia
Sunday, April 9, 1989, 12:47:22 UTC · 2.675°N, 128.533°E
A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck 119 km NNE of Tobelo, Indonesia on Sunday, April 9, 1989, 12:47:22 UTC, at a depth of 33.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.1 on March 23, 1989.
- 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 75 km aftershock search area
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
66 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Sunda and Birds Head 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 lists 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.7 on May 2, 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 794 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 · 297 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.790 km NE of Tobelo, IndonesiaSeptember 8, 1966 · 32 km S of this epicenter
- 7.7121 km E of Bitung, IndonesiaAugust 10, 1968 · 289 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.6223 km ESE of Sarangani, PhilippinesJanuary 30, 1969 · 258 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.564 km NNW of Ternate, IndonesiaJune 25, 1907 · 212 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.5146 km NW of Ternate, IndonesiaAugust 14, 1986 · 244 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.5273 km N of Tobelo, IndonesiaOctober 23, 1914 · 179 km N of this epicenter
- 7.2182 km WNW of Tobelo, IndonesiaOctober 10, 1938 · 226 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 9 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 34 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1855
Maluku: Ternate Island
14 Jul 1855 · 249 km away · intensity IX
34 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1840
Maluku: Ternate Island
14 Feb 1840 · 248 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1968M7.6
Molucca Islands: Manado, Celebes
10 Aug 1968 · 295 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1910M6.7
Sulawesi-N. Moluccas Islands
18 Dec 1910 · 225 km away · intensity VIII
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1907M7.9
Djailolo Gilolo
25 Jun 1907 · 252 km away
- 1969M7.5
Talaud Islands, Mindanao, Visayan
30 Jan 1969 · 268 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.