QuakeScout
Magnitude3.8

Reviewed by USGSIndonesia30y ago

M3.8 earthquake 41 km W of Abepura, Indonesia

Wednesday, March 27, 1996, 07:41:58 UTC · 2.543°S, 140.262°E

A magnitude 3.8 earthquake struck 41 km W of Abepura, Indonesia on Wednesday, March 27, 1996, 07:41:58 UTC, at a depth of 33.0 km (shallow).

Magnitude
3.8
Minor · mb
Depth
33 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

8 tons of TNT

That is about 1/1,992 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 63 times more energy.

Tectonic setting

80 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Woodlark and Maoke plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.

Depth: shallow

33 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 508 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 7.8230 km W of Abepura, IndonesiaJune 1, 1906 · 189 km W of this epicenter
  2. 7.8New Guinea, Papua New GuineaSeptember 20, 1935 · 193 km SE of this epicenter
  3. 7.7120 km SW of Abepura, IndonesiaJanuary 10, 1971 · 95 km SW of this epicenter
  4. 7.6158 km WSW of Abepura, IndonesiaOctober 26, 1926 · 120 km W of this epicenter
  5. 7.5143 km WSW of Abepura, IndonesiaMay 28, 1968 · 105 km W of this epicenter
  6. 7.593 km SW of Aitape, Papua New GuineaJuly 29, 1917 · 208 km SE of this epicenter
  7. 7.2250 km ESE of Biak, IndonesiaSeptember 19, 1950 · 240 km W of this epicenter
  8. 7.1214 km NW of Kiunga, Papua New GuineaJune 25, 1976 · 230 km S of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 16 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 6,563 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1976M7.1

    New Guinea: Irian Jaya

    25 Jun 1976 · 230 km away

    6,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

  2. 1981M6.7

    New Guinea: Irian Jaya: Jayawijaya Mts

    19 Jan 1981 · 253 km away

    305 deaths$5 million damage

  3. 1976M7.1

    New Guinea: Irian Jaya: Jayawijaya

    29 Oct 1976 · 223 km away · intensity VIII

    133 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)

  4. 1989M5.8

    Kurima District, Baliem River

    1 Aug 1989 · 259 km away

    120 deaths$1 million damage

  5. 1900M6.9

    Nw. Irian Jaya

    7 Oct 1900 · 165 km away

    5 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami

  6. 1971M8.1

    New Guinea: Irian Jaya:Djajapura,Sentani

    10 Jan 1971 · 88 km away · intensity IX

    Moderate damage ($1–5M)

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

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