Reviewed by USGSIndonesia34y ago
M6.6 earthquake 160 km S of Pagar Alam, Indonesia
Saturday, April 18, 1992, 09:16:52 UTC · 5.454°S, 103.001°E
A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck 160 km S of Pagar Alam, Indonesia on Saturday, April 18, 1992, 09:16:52 UTC, at a depth of 29.3 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.6 on December 15, 1979.
- Magnitude
- 6.6
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 29 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- V
- Moderate (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 100 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
120 kilotons of TNT
That is about 8 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 251 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
176 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Sunda and Australian plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
29 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 lists 4 M2.5+ earthquakes within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.5 on April 18, 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 441 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.573 km WSW of Bengkulu, IndonesiaJune 25, 1914 · 220 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.548 km SW of Kotabumi, IndonesiaJune 24, 1933 · 183 km E of this epicenter
- 7.3161 km S of Bengkulu, IndonesiaSeptember 25, 1931 · 84 km W of this epicenter
- 7.0164 km SSW of Pagar Alam, IndonesiaFebruary 10, 1931 · 46 km W of this epicenter
- 7.0119 km S of Bengkulu, IndonesiaOctober 1, 1975 · 109 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.030 km WNW of Labuan, IndonesiaApril 1, 1943 · 299 km E of this epicenter
- 7.061 km S of Bengkulu, IndonesiaApril 8, 1971 · 147 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 13 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 28 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1914M7.6
Sumatera
25 Jun 1914 · 215 km away
20 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1979M6.6
S Sumatera
15 Dec 1979 · 242 km away
8 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1770M7.0
Sumatra:
1770 · 122 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1986M5.0
Sumatera: S, Hahat, Muaraenim
29 Jan 1986 · 180 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)
- 1933M5.8
S Sumatera
25 Jun 1933 · 173 km away · intensity IX
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1931M7.4
Sw. Sumatra
25 Sep 1931 · 58 km away · intensity VIII
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.