Reviewed by USGS26y ago
M5.5 earthquake in Vanuatu region
Friday, February 25, 2000, 14:16:01 UTC · 19.826°S, 174.195°E
A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck in Vanuatu region on Friday, February 25, 2000, 14:16:01 UTC, at a depth of 33.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.6 on February 25, 2000.
- Magnitude
- 5.5
- Moderate · mwc
- 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
3 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/6 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 6 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
85 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Conway Reef and New Hebrides 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 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.4 on March 6, 2000. 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 135 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.6south of the Fiji IslandsMarch 3, 1990 · 274 km S of this epicenter
- 7.1Vanuatu regionFebruary 25, 2000 · 52 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.8south of the Fiji IslandsNovember 7, 1988 · 282 km S of this epicenter
- 6.7Vanuatu regionJune 30, 1993 · 171 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.6southeast of the Loyalty IslandsMarch 3, 1990 · 287 km S of this epicenter
- 6.6southeast of the Loyalty IslandsJuly 23, 1988 · 266 km S of this epicenter
- 6.6Vanuatu regionNovember 4, 1934 · 237 km S of this epicenter
- 6.5southeast of the Loyalty IslandsNovember 4, 1934 · 259 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 1 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1990M7.6
Fiji Islands
3 Mar 1990 · 274 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.