Reviewed by USGSIndonesia21y ago
M4.6 earthquake 124 km W of Banda Aceh, Indonesia
Friday, June 24, 2005, 23:27:37 UTC · 5.487°N, 94.212°E
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 124 km W of Banda Aceh, Indonesia on Friday, June 24, 2005, 23:27:37 UTC, at a depth of 30.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.3 on June 24, 2005.
- Magnitude
- 4.6
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 30 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: 50 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
120 tons of TNT
That is about 1/126 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 4 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
118 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Sunda and Burma plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
30 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 50 km
USGS lists 6 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.9 on July 23, 2005. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 4.9101 km W of Banda Aceh, Indonesia21y ago · 24 km E of this epicenter
- 4.5122 km W of Banda Aceh, Indonesia21y ago · 17 km S of this epicenter
- 4.6125 km WSW of Banda Aceh, Indonesia21y ago · 31 km S of this epicenter
- 4.3126 km W of Banda Aceh, Indonesia21y ago · 4 km SW of this epicenter
- 4.3141 km WSW of Banda Aceh, Indonesia21y ago · 50 km S of this epicenter
- 4.6144 km WSW of Banda Aceh, Indonesia21y ago · 39 km S of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 553 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.2284 km WNW of Sabang, IndonesiaDecember 26, 2004 · 210 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.0190 km WNW of Sabang, IndonesiaMay 17, 1955 · 154 km N of this epicenter
- 7.040 km NE of Meulaboh, IndonesiaAugust 3, 1935 · 272 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.975 km WSW of Banda Aceh, IndonesiaAugust 23, 1936 · 61 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.95 km W of Banda Aceh, IndonesiaApril 2, 1964 · 119 km E of this epicenter
- 6.968 km WSW of Sabang, IndonesiaApril 4, 1983 · 62 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.8238 km WNW of Sabang, IndonesiaJanuary 20, 1917 · 189 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.7171 km W of Meulaboh, IndonesiaDecember 9, 1929 · 156 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 18 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 9 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1936M7.3
Banda Aceh,Lhok Sukon,Lhoksemawe
23 Aug 1936 · 87 km away · intensity VIII
9 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1964M7.0
Banda Aceh
2 Apr 1964 · 171 km away · intensity VII
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1837M7.3
Banda Atjeh
29 Sep 1837 · 198 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1983M6.6
Sumatera: Banda Aceh
4 Apr 1983 · 62 km away · intensity VII
$1 million damage
- 1982M6.3
Little Nicobar Island
20 Jan 1982 · 164 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1997M6.0
N. Sumatera, Aceh, Banda Aceh, Medan
20 Aug 1997 · 282 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.