Reviewed by USGSTurkey35y ago
M5.9 earthquake 6 km NNE of Pulumer, Turkey
Sunday, March 15, 1992, 16:16:24 UTC · 39.532°N, 39.929°E
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 6 km NNE of Pulumer, Turkey on Sunday, March 15, 1992, 16:16:24 UTC, at a depth of 20.9 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.7 on March 13, 1992.
- Magnitude
- 5.9
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 21 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VII
- Very strong (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 75 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
11 kilotons of TNT
That is about the energy of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 22 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
13 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Anatolian and Eurasian plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
21 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 3 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.7 on March 21, 1992. 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 111 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.820 km NNE of Erzincan, TurkeyDecember 26, 1939 · 51 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.018 km W of Doğanşar, TurkeyJanuary 24, 1916 · 235 km W of this epicenter
- 6.918 km ESE of Pasinler, TurkeySeptember 13, 1924 · 172 km E of this epicenter
- 6.813 km NNE of Sincik, TurkeyDecember 4, 1905 · 189 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.814 km NE of Varto, TurkeyAugust 19, 1966 · 144 km E of this epicenter
- 6.827 km E of Narman, TurkeyOctober 30, 1983 · 212 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.814 km ENE of Yedisu, TurkeyAugust 17, 1949 · 64 km E of this epicenter
- 6.77 km ENE of Lice, TurkeySeptember 6, 1975 · 136 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 54 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 67,979 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1939M7.8
Erzincan
26 Dec 1939 · 51 km away · intensity XII
32,700 deaths$20 million damagetsunami
- 1859M6.1
Erzurum
2 Jun 1859 · 124 km away
15,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1784
Erzurum,Erzincan
23 Jul 1784 · 41 km away
5,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1903M6.3
Malazgirt
28 Apr 1903 · 226 km away · intensity X
3,560 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1966M6.8
Varto
19 Aug 1966 · 145 km away · intensity IX
2,394 deaths$20 million damage
- 1975M6.7
Lice
6 Sep 1975 · 136 km away · intensity IX
2,311 deaths$17 million damage
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.