Reviewed by USGSTimor Leste30y ago
M5.1 earthquake 251 km NE of Lospalos, Timor Leste
Friday, April 5, 1996, 11:59:37 UTC · 6.857°S, 128.555°E
A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck 251 km NE of Lospalos, Timor Leste on Friday, April 5, 1996, 11:59:37 UTC, at a depth of 33.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.3 on March 13, 1996.
- Magnitude
- 5.1
- Moderate · 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 75 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
674 tons of TNT
That is about 1/22 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 1 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
19 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Banda Sea and Timor 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 75 km
USGS lists 3 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.0 on May 3, 1996. 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 909 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.11963 Banda Sea EarthquakeNovember 4, 1963 · 116 km E of this epicenter
- 7.7Banda SeaNovember 2, 1950 · 69 km E of this epicenter
- 7.5273 km WSW of Tual, IndonesiaJune 3, 1927 · 222 km E of this epicenter
- 7.3145 km NNE of Lospalos, Timor LesteAugust 30, 1917 · 117 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.355 km S of Ambon, IndonesiaOctober 8, 1950 · 298 km N of this epicenter
- 7.3281 km WSW of Tual, IndonesiaDecember 20, 1992 · 205 km E of this epicenter
- 7.3172 km NE of Lospalos, Timor LesteNovember 24, 1983 · 81 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.2187 km N of Baukau, Timor LesteFebruary 11, 1969 · 218 km W 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 67 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1852M8.3
Maluku: Bandanaira
25 Nov 1852 · 222 km away · intensity IX
60 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1763
Bandaneira
12 Sep 1763 · 186 km away · intensity X
7 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1710
Bandaneira
6 Mar 1710 · 298 km away · intensity IX
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1975M5.9
Maluku: Bandanaira
15 Jan 1975 · 261 km away · intensity VII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1963M8.3
Banda Sea
4 Nov 1963 · 113 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)
- 1852M7.0
Bandaneira
24 Dec 1852 · 298 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.