Reviewed by USGS22y ago
M4.2 earthquake in Fiji region
Monday, January 17, 2005, 19:37:36 UTC · 17.940°S, 177.739°W
A magnitude 4.2 earthquake struck in Fiji region on Monday, January 17, 2005, 19:37:36 UTC, at a depth of 441.6 km (deep).
- Magnitude
- 4.2
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 442 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
30 tons of TNT
That is about 1/500 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 16 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
133 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
442 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 1,137 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.8159 km W of Pangai, TongaDecember 14, 1950 · 278 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.8Fiji regionJanuary 1, 1919 · 157 km S of this epicenter
- 7.6178 km E of Levuka, FijiFebruary 22, 1909 · 136 km W of this epicenter
- 7.6240 km E of Levuka, FijiMarch 9, 1994 · 72 km W of this epicenter
- 7.5262 km WNW of Haveluloto, TongaMay 21, 1962 · 241 km S of this epicenter
- 7.4227 km E of Levuka, FijiAugust 21, 1910 · 87 km W of this epicenter
- 7.4Fiji regionSeptember 28, 1957 · 296 km S of this epicenter
- 7.3227 km WNW of Haveluloto, TongaApril 16, 1937 · 299 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 8 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1919M6.9
Rabi,Tunuloa Mission,Suvasavu
3 Oct 1919 · 295 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1979M6.9
Fiji Islands
16 Nov 1979 · 272 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1932M6.4
Koro,Mudu,Suvasavu
8 Mar 1932 · 267 km away · intensity VII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1909M7.8
Fiji Islands
22 Feb 1909 · 134 km away
- 1919M7.8
Fiji Islands
1 Jan 1919 · 157 km away
tsunami
- 1950M7.7
Tonga Islands
14 Dec 1950 · 252 km away · intensity VI
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.