Reviewed by USGSVanuatu29y ago
M4.5 earthquake 162 km NNW of Sola, Vanuatu
Saturday, May 3, 1997, 17:16:20 UTC · 12.558°S, 166.891°E
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 162 km NNW of Sola, Vanuatu on Saturday, May 3, 1997, 17:16:20 UTC, at a depth of 300.0 km (deep). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.7 on May 3, 1997.
- Magnitude
- 4.5
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 300 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 earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
85 tons of TNT
That is about 1/178 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 6 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
111 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Pacific and Australian plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: deep
300 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 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 1,125 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.9199 km S of Lata, Solomon IslandsJuly 17, 1980 · 106 km W of this epicenter
- 7.8146 km SSE of Lata, Solomon IslandsDecember 31, 1966 · 89 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.8186 km NNW of Sola, VanuatuDecember 17, 1957 · 27 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.745 km NNE of Port-Olry, VanuatuMay 20, 1965 · 235 km S of this epicenter
- 7.7171 km NNW of Sola, VanuatuApril 21, 1997 · 24 km W of this epicenter
- 7.7138 km SSE of Lata, Solomon IslandsJuly 18, 1934 · 97 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.5196 km SSE of Lata, Solomon IslandsJuly 8, 1980 · 58 km W of this epicenter
- 7.581 km NW of Port-Olry, VanuatuDecember 28, 1973 · 214 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 22 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1973M7.5
Espiritu Santo, Luganille
28 Dec 1973 · 214 km away · intensity VII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1910M7.2
Espiritu Santo
10 Nov 1910 · 166 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1973M7.2
Luganville, Lamap
29 Dec 1973 · 285 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1997M7.7
Santa Cruz Islands; Vanuatu
21 Apr 1997 · 24 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1980M7.5
Santa Cruz Islands: Banks
8 Jul 1980 · 58 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1980M6.1
Vanuatu Islands
12 May 1980 · 238 km away · intensity VI
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.