Reviewed by USGSIndonesia21y ago
M4.5 earthquake 27 km WNW of Sigli, Indonesia
Sunday, October 9, 2005, 12:45:28 UTC · 5.466°N, 95.731°E
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 27 km WNW of Sigli, Indonesia on Sunday, October 9, 2005, 12:45:28 UTC, at a depth of 30.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.7 on October 7, 2005.
- Magnitude
- 4.5
- 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 earthquake
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
4 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Sunda and Burma plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
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 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 466 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 9.12004 Sumatra - Andaman Islands EarthquakeDecember 26, 2004 · 243 km S of this epicenter
- 7.450 km NW of Sinabang, IndonesiaNovember 2, 2002 · 296 km S of this epicenter
- 7.186 km WSW of Pangkalan Brandan, IndonesiaSeptember 19, 1936 · 285 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.0190 km WNW of Sabang, IndonesiaMay 17, 1955 · 256 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.040 km NE of Meulaboh, IndonesiaAugust 3, 1935 · 142 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.085 km SSE of Meulaboh, IndonesiaJune 20, 1976 · 239 km S of this epicenter
- 6.975 km WSW of Banda Aceh, IndonesiaAugust 23, 1936 · 115 km W of this epicenter
- 6.95 km W of Banda Aceh, IndonesiaApril 2, 1964 · 50 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 23 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 227,943 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 2004M9.1
Sumatra: Aceh: Off West Coast
26 Dec 2004 · 243 km away
227,899 deaths$10 billion damagetsunami
- 1936
N Sumatera: Tapanuli, Karo
9 Sep 1936 · 294 km away · intensity VIII
17 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1967M6.1
N Sumatera,Malay Peninsula
12 Apr 1967 · 174 km away
14 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1936M7.3
Banda Aceh,Lhok Sukon,Lhoksemawe
23 Aug 1936 · 134 km away · intensity VIII
9 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 2002M7.3
Sumatera: Simeulue
2 Nov 2002 · 296 km away
3 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1990M6.8
N Sumatera, Blangkejeren, Kutacane
15 Nov 1990 · 258 km away
1 death$2 million damage
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.