M7.9 earthquake 169 km NNE of Maumere, Indonesia

Monday, June 17, 1996, 11:22:18 UTC · 7.137°S, 122.589°E

A magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck 169 km NNE of Maumere, Indonesia on Monday, June 17, 1996, 11:22:18 UTC, at a depth of 587.3 km (deep). No earthquake of this size or larger appears within 300 km in the USGS catalog since 1900.

Magnitude: 7.9; Major · mwc
Depth: 587 km; Deep
Felt reports: 0; Did You Feel It?
Est. shaking: IV; Light (ShakeMap)
PAGER alert: None; Not issued
Tsunami: No flag; USGS feed

Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 200 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

11 megatons of TNT

That is about 709 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 22,387 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

79 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: deep

587 km

Deep earthquakes (over 300 km) happen deep inside subducting plates. They rarely cause damage, but can be felt faintly over very large distances.

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 200 km

USGS lists 18 M2.5+ earthquakes within 200 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.4 on July 4, 1996. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 328 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 11 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,918 recorded deaths. The most severe:

1992M7.8
Flores Region, Maumere, Babi
12 Dec 1992 · 168 km away · intensity XI
2,500 deaths$100 million damagetsunami
1896
Timor: Alor Island
18 Apr 1896 · 268 km away · intensity VIII
250 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
1987M6.5
Timor: Pantar, Mount Sirung
26 Nov 1987 · 212 km away
125 deaths$5 million damagetsunami
1991M6.5
Timor: Kalabahi, Dili
4 Jul 1991 · 254 km away
28 deaths$8 million damage
1982M5.9
Flores Island: Eastern
25 Dec 1982 · 151 km away
13 deaths$1 million damagetsunami
1961M6.5
Flores: Endeh
16 Mar 1961 · 135 km away · intensity VIII
2 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)

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

Nearby trackers