Reviewed by USGSIndonesia21y ago
M3.8 earthquake 274 km W of Sabang, Indonesia
Sunday, July 17, 2005, 14:54:14 UTC · 6.221°N, 92.857°E
A magnitude 3.8 earthquake struck 274 km W of Sabang, Indonesia on Sunday, July 17, 2005, 14:54:14 UTC, at a depth of 38.2 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 3.8
- Minor · mb
- Depth
- 38 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
8 tons of TNT
That is about 1/1,992 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 63 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
48 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Burma and Indian plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
38 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 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.1 on August 5, 2005. 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 497 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 · 77 km N of this epicenter
- 7.0190 km WNW of Sabang, IndonesiaMay 17, 1955 · 131 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.975 km WSW of Banda Aceh, IndonesiaAugust 23, 1936 · 232 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.95 km W of Banda Aceh, IndonesiaApril 2, 1964 · 279 km E of this epicenter
- 6.968 km WSW of Sabang, IndonesiaApril 4, 1983 · 214 km E of this epicenter
- 6.8238 km WNW of Sabang, IndonesiaJanuary 20, 1917 · 113 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.7off the west coast of northern SumatraJanuary 1, 2005 · 139 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.63 km ESE of Sabang, IndonesiaJanuary 30, 1942 · 278 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 14 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 · 204 km away · intensity VIII
9 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1881M7.9
Andaman I,Nicobar I
31 Dec 1881 · 260 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1983M6.6
Sumatera: Banda Aceh
4 Apr 1983 · 214 km away · intensity VII
$1 million damage
- 1982M6.3
Little Nicobar Island
20 Jan 1982 · 150 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 2005M7.2
Andaman Islands, Nicobar Islands
24 Jul 2005 · 203 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)
- 1847
Little Nicobar Island
31 Oct 1847 · 153 km away · intensity X
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.