Reviewed by USGSGuam33y ago
M5.2 earthquake 38 km NNE of Yigo Village, Guam
Saturday, September 4, 1993, 06:11:37 UTC · 13.862°N, 145.003°E
A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 38 km NNE of Yigo Village, Guam on Saturday, September 4, 1993, 06:11:37 UTC, at a depth of 25.9 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.2 on August 31, 1993.
- Magnitude
- 5.2
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 26 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
951 tons of TNT
That is about 1/16 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 2 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
113 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Philippine Sea and Mariana plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
26 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 4 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.3 on September 19, 1993. 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 350 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.832 km S of Inarajan Village, GuamAugust 8, 1993 · 100 km S of this epicenter
- 7.0176 km ESE of San Jose Village, Northern Mariana IslandsMay 18, 1913 · 229 km E of this epicenter
- 7.098 km SSE of Inarajan Village, GuamDecember 9, 1909 · 162 km S of this epicenter
- 7.032 km NNE of Yigo Village, GuamOctober 26, 1912 · 7 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.5112 km NE of Saipan, Northern Mariana IslandsJune 6, 1993 · 277 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.446 km ENE of Yigo Village, GuamOctober 29, 1936 · 31 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.3146 km WSW of Merizo Village, GuamNovember 24, 1917 · 210 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.3112 km ENE of Saipan, Northern Mariana IslandsJanuary 17, 1948 · 274 km NE 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. The most severe:
- 1993M7.8
Tuman Bay, Apra Harbor
8 Aug 1993 · 100 km away · intensity IX
$250 million damagetsunami
- 1849M7.5
Guam
25 Jan 1849 · 184 km away · intensity IX
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1909M8.0
Guam
9 Dec 1909 · 151 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1892M7.5
Guam
16 May 1892 · 184 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1825
Ladrones Island
Apr 1825 · 184 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1834
Agana
May 1834 · 184 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.