Reviewed by USGSIndonesia37y ago
M6.8 earthquake 93 km NNW of Ende, Indonesia
Monday, July 31, 1989, 17:07:27 UTC · 8.048°S, 121.384°E
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck 93 km NNW of Ende, Indonesia on Monday, July 31, 1989, 17:07:27 UTC, at a depth of 13.8 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.8 on January 26, 1968.
- Magnitude
- 6.8
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 14 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VI
- Strong (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
239 kilotons of TNT
That is about 16 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 501 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
5 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Banda Sea and Timor plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
14 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 100 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 218 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.270 km SE of Maumere, IndonesiaOctober 20, 1938 · 181 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.0199 km SSW of Katabu, IndonesiaMarch 3, 1927 · 168 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.9215 km NW of Maubara, Timor LesteOctober 18, 1964 · 285 km E of this epicenter
- 6.889 km NW of Pante Makasar, Timor LesteJune 25, 1953 · 282 km E of this epicenter
- 6.892 km NNW of Pante Makasar, Timor LesteJune 26, 1953 · 291 km E of this epicenter
- 6.835 km SW of Ruteng, IndonesiaJanuary 26, 1968 · 153 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.746 km NE of Bima, IndonesiaNovember 2, 1954 · 264 km W of this epicenter
- 6.724 km ESE of Ruteng, IndonesiaNovember 28, 1928 · 107 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 10 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 515 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1820M7.5
Sulawesi: Makasar
29 Dec 1820 · 287 km away · intensity X
500 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1982M5.9
Flores Island: Eastern
25 Dec 1982 · 191 km away
13 deaths$1 million damagetsunami
- 1961M6.5
Flores: Endeh
16 Mar 1961 · 70 km away · intensity VIII
2 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1828
Sulawesi
29 Dec 1828 · 287 km away · intensity IX
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1982M5.6
Flores Islands: Ruteng
6 Aug 1982 · 96 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1836M7.5
Flores Sea
28 Nov 1836 · 297 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.