Reviewed by USGS23y ago
M4.5 earthquake in Fiji region
Saturday, March 1, 2003, 22:45:33 UTC · 20.085°S, 177.864°W
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck in Fiji region on Saturday, March 1, 2003, 22:45:33 UTC, at a depth of 504.7 km (deep). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.4 on February 25, 2003.
- Magnitude
- 4.5
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 505 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: 50 km aftershock search area
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
167 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Niuafo'ou and Australian plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: deep
505 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 lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.2 on March 29, 2003. 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 1,398 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.0TongaJanuary 4, 1903 · 299 km E of this epicenter
- 7.8159 km W of Pangai, TongaDecember 14, 1950 · 212 km E of this epicenter
- 7.8Fiji regionJanuary 1, 1919 · 88 km N of this epicenter
- 7.8192 km WSW of Haveluloto, TongaOctober 14, 1997 · 251 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.7Fiji regionAugust 19, 2002 · 248 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.6178 km E of Levuka, FijiFebruary 22, 1909 · 242 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.6240 km E of Levuka, FijiMarch 9, 1994 · 235 km N of this epicenter
- 7.5262 km WNW of Haveluloto, TongaMay 21, 1962 · 42 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 10 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1937M8.1
Fiji Islands
16 Apr 1937 · 181 km away
- 1903M8.0
Tonga Islands
4 Jan 1903 · 299 km away
- 1909M7.8
Fiji Islands
22 Feb 1909 · 261 km away
- 1919M7.8
Fiji Islands
1 Jan 1919 · 88 km away
tsunami
- 1950M7.7
Tonga Islands
14 Dec 1950 · 206 km away · intensity VI
- 1997M7.7
Tonga Islands
14 Oct 1997 · 251 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.