Reviewed by USGS20y ago
M5.2 earthquake south of the Kermadec Islands
Tuesday, October 17, 2006, 03:16:24 UTC · 33.059°S, 179.043°W
A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck south of the Kermadec Islands on Tuesday, October 17, 2006, 03:16:24 UTC, at a depth of 62.3 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.2 on September 13, 2006.
- Magnitude
- 5.2
- Moderate · mb
- Depth
- 62 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
951 tons of TNT
That is about 1/16 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 2 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
113 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Kermadec and Pacific plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
62 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 7 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.9 on November 8, 2006. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 4.4south of the Kermadec Islands20y ago · 61 km SE of this epicenter
- 3.7south of the Kermadec Islands20y ago · 17 km NE of this epicenter
- 4.5south of the Kermadec Islands20y ago · 32 km S of this epicenter
- 4.6south of the Kermadec Islands20y ago · 31 km SW of this epicenter
- 4.9south of the Kermadec Islands20y ago · 39 km SW of this epicenter
- 4.1south of the Kermadec Islands20y ago · 50 km S of this epicenter
- 4.6south of the Kermadec Islands20y ago · 1 km W of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 1,015 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 · 141 km N of this epicenter
- 7.3Kermadec Islands, New ZealandJuly 25, 1968 · 265 km N of this epicenter
- 7.2Kermadec Islands, New ZealandApril 17, 1919 · 293 km N of this epicenter
- 7.1Kermadec Islands, New ZealandSeptember 26, 1968 · 287 km N of this epicenter
- 7.1south of the Kermadec IslandsMay 25, 1997 · 151 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.0Kermadec Islands, New ZealandMay 20, 1968 · 264 km N of this epicenter
- 7.0Kermadec Islands, New ZealandMay 14, 1989 · 288 km N of this epicenter
- 7.0Kermadec Islands regionJanuary 26, 1983 · 299 km N 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 · 258 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.