Reviewed by USGSIndonesia19y ago
M4.5 earthquake 111 km NW of Tobelo, Indonesia
Friday, March 16, 2007, 02:15:56 UTC · 2.401°N, 127.257°E
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 111 km NW of Tobelo, Indonesia on Friday, March 16, 2007, 02:15:56 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.1 on March 15, 2007.
- Magnitude
- 4.5
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 10 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
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
8 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Sunda and Birds Head plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
10 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 M4.3 on April 14, 2007. 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 1,805 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.8161 km SE of Sarangani, PhilippinesApril 1, 1936 · 229 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.790 km NE of Tobelo, IndonesiaSeptember 8, 1966 · 137 km E of this epicenter
- 7.7148 km SE of Tondano, IndonesiaMay 14, 1932 · 271 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.7121 km E of Bitung, IndonesiaAugust 10, 1968 · 154 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.6101 km SE of Sarangani, PhilippinesDecember 16, 1910 · 287 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.6223 km ESE of Sarangani, PhilippinesJanuary 30, 1969 · 252 km N of this epicenter
- 7.564 km NNW of Ternate, IndonesiaJune 25, 1907 · 119 km S of this epicenter
- 7.5126 km WNW of Ternate, IndonesiaJanuary 21, 2007 · 184 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 26 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,979 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1856
Sangihe Pulau (Volcanic)
2 Mar 1856 · 241 km away
2,806 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1845M7.0
N Sulawesi: Menado, Tikala, Tomohon
8 Feb 1845 · 286 km away · intensity IX
118 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1855
Maluku: Ternate Island
14 Jul 1855 · 178 km away · intensity IX
34 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1994M7.0
Kau
21 Jan 1994 · 163 km away
9 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1932M7.7
Sulawesi: Kakas,Langowan,Poso,Tondano
14 May 1932 · 271 km away · intensity VII
7 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 2007M7.5
Molucca Islands: N
21 Jan 2007 · 184 km away
4 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.