Reviewed by USGSIndonesia19y ago
M4.8 earthquake 144 km SW of Padang, Indonesia
Wednesday, November 14, 2007, 10:37:19 UTC · 1.878°S, 99.435°E
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 144 km SW of Padang, Indonesia on Wednesday, November 14, 2007, 10:37:19 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.9 on November 11, 2007.
- Magnitude
- 4.8
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 35 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
239 tons of TNT
That is about 1/63 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 2 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
105 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Sunda and Australian plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
35 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 4 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.6 on December 5, 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 375 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.987 km SW of Sungai Penuh, IndonesiaSeptember 12, 2007 · 177 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.726 km S of Sijunjung, IndonesiaJune 9, 1943 · 197 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.6212 km W of Pariaman, IndonesiaDecember 28, 1935 · 222 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.676 km SSW of Sungai Penuh, IndonesiaJune 3, 1909 · 216 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.1190 km SSW of Sibolga, IndonesiaNovember 17, 1984 · 279 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.095 km W of Pariaman, IndonesiaApril 1, 1998 · 150 km N of this epicenter
- 7.0153 km SSW of Padang, IndonesiaSeptember 13, 2007 · 35 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.0122 km W of Pariaman, IndonesiaMay 8, 1946 · 136 km N of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 22 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,518 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1861M8.5
Lagundi, Simuk, Tello I
16 Feb 1861 · 236 km away · intensity IX
1,105 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1861M7.0
Sw. Sumatra
9 Mar 1861 · 264 km away
950 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1797M8.0
Sw. Sumatra
10 Feb 1797 · 214 km away · intensity IX
300 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1995M6.8
Sumatera, Jambi Province
6 Oct 1995 · 223 km away
84 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 2007M6.4
Sumatra: Southern
6 Mar 2007 · 194 km away · intensity VIII
67 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 2006M5.8
Sumatera: Northern, Muarasipongi
17 Dec 2006 · 282 km away
7 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.