Reviewed by USGSIndonesia36y ago
M4.8 earthquake 72 km W of Tomohon, Indonesia
Tuesday, May 29, 1990, 09:42:28 UTC · 1.376°N, 124.154°E
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 72 km W of Tomohon, Indonesia on Tuesday, May 29, 1990, 09:42:28 UTC, at a depth of 41.5 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.8 on May 26, 1990.
- Magnitude
- 4.8
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 42 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
239 tons of TNT
That is about 1/63 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 2 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
65 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
42 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 50 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 765 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.11939 Sulawesi EarthquakeDecember 21, 1939 · 217 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.8160 km W of Gorontalo, IndonesiaJanuary 22, 1905 · 294 km W of this epicenter
- 7.875 km NNW of Gorontalo, IndonesiaApril 18, 1990 · 146 km W of this epicenter
- 7.7228 km SW of Sarangani, PhilippinesJune 11, 1972 · 267 km N of this epicenter
- 7.7148 km SE of Tondano, IndonesiaMay 14, 1932 · 222 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.7121 km E of Bitung, IndonesiaAugust 10, 1968 · 230 km E of this epicenter
- 7.5146 km NW of Ternate, IndonesiaAugust 14, 1986 · 267 km E of this epicenter
- 7.433 km NW of Gorontalo, IndonesiaNovember 8, 1941 · 163 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 23 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,934 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1856
Sangihe Pulau (Volcanic)
2 Mar 1856 · 296 km away
2,806 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1845M7.0
N Sulawesi: Menado, Tikala, Tomohon
8 Feb 1845 · 78 km away · intensity IX
118 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1932M7.7
Sulawesi: Kakas,Langowan,Poso,Tondano
14 May 1932 · 222 km away · intensity VII
7 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1990M7.6
Minahassa Peninsula: Bolaang-Gorontalo
18 Apr 1990 · 146 km away
3 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1858M7.3
N. Moluccas Islands
13 Dec 1858 · 209 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1989M5.6
Molucca Passage: Morotai, Tanawangu
8 Mar 1989 · 229 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.