QuakeScout
Magnitude6.8

Reviewed by USGS30y ago

M6.8 earthquake in Kermadec Islands region

Tuesday, November 5, 1996, 09:41:34 UTC · 31.160°S, 179.998°E

A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck in Kermadec Islands region on Tuesday, November 5, 1996, 09:41:34 UTC, at a depth of 369.4 km (deep). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.0 on May 14, 1989.

Magnitude
6.8
Strong · mwb
Depth
369 km
Deep
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: 100 km aftershock search area

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

239 kilotons of TNT

That is about 16 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 501 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

50 km

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

Depth: deep

369 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 100 km

USGS lists 3 M2.5+ earthquakes within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.2 on December 1, 1996. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

M3M4M5M6M71h6h1d3d7d14d30dMainshock M6.8
Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.
  1. 4.2Kermadec Islands region30y ago · 63 km NW of this epicenter
  2. 6.2Kermadec Islands region30y ago · 78 km NE of this epicenter
  3. 3.8Kermadec Islands region30y ago · 55 km NE of this epicenter

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 934 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 7.5Kermadec Islands, New ZealandNovember 16, 1917 · 253 km NE of this epicenter
  2. 7.3Kermadec Islands, New ZealandMarch 26, 1963 · 258 km NE of this epicenter
  3. 7.3Kermadec Islands, New ZealandJuly 25, 1968 · 182 km E of this epicenter
  4. 7.2Kermadec Islands, New ZealandFebruary 9, 1978 · 258 km E of this epicenter
  5. 7.2Kermadec Islands, New ZealandAugust 2, 1941 · 277 km NE of this epicenter
  6. 7.2Kermadec Islands, New ZealandApril 17, 1919 · 202 km E of this epicenter
  7. 7.1Kermadec Islands, New ZealandJune 29, 1910 · 278 km E of this epicenter
  8. 7.1Kermadec Islands, New ZealandSeptember 26, 1968 · 199 km E of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 3 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:

  1. 1968M7.3

    S Of, Raoul

    25 Jul 1968 · 158 km away

    Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami

  2. 1976M7.8

    Kermadec Islands

    14 Jan 1976 · 300 km away · intensity VIII

  3. 1978M7.7

    S Of

    9 Feb 1978 · 258 km away

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

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