Reviewed by USGS20y ago
M5.0 earthquake south of the Kermadec Islands
Thursday, October 12, 2006, 19:19:06 UTC · 33.437°S, 178.693°W
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck south of the Kermadec Islands on Thursday, October 12, 2006, 19:19:06 UTC, at a depth of 5.8 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.0 on October 12, 2006.
- Magnitude
- 5.0
- Moderate · mb
- Depth
- 6 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: 75 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
477 tons of TNT
That is about 1/32 of the Hiroshima bomb. Each whole step in magnitude is about 32 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
63 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Kermadec and Pacific plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
6 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 75 km
USGS lists 5 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.2 on October 17, 2006. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 4.6south of the Kermadec Islands20y ago · 56 km W of this epicenter
- 4.9south of the Kermadec Islands20y ago · 48 km W of this epicenter
- 4.1south of the Kermadec Islands20y ago · 19 km W of this epicenter
- 4.6south of the Kermadec Islands20y ago · 54 km NW of this epicenter
- 5.2south of the Kermadec Islands20y ago · 53 km NW of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 916 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.4Kermadec Islands regionMay 16, 2006 · 190 km N of this epicenter
- 7.3Kermadec Islands, New ZealandJuly 25, 1968 · 298 km N of this epicenter
- 7.1south of the Kermadec IslandsMay 25, 1997 · 204 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.0Kermadec Islands, New ZealandMay 20, 1968 · 297 km N of this epicenter
- 6.9Kermadec Islands regionMay 3, 1997 · 194 km N of this epicenter
- 6.9south of the Kermadec IslandsSeptember 26, 1985 · 140 km S of this epicenter
- 6.9south of the Kermadec IslandsJuly 11, 1943 · 108 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.8Kermadec Islands regionNovember 5, 1996 · 281 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 1 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1968M7.3
S Of, Raoul
25 Jul 1968 · 295 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.