Reviewed by USGSIndonesia19y ago
M5.1 earthquake 94 km NNW of Ternate, Indonesia
Tuesday, December 4, 2007, 00:05:02 UTC · 1.553°N, 126.995°E
A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck 94 km NNW of Ternate, Indonesia on Tuesday, December 4, 2007, 00:05:02 UTC, at a depth of 64.6 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.2 on November 21, 2007.
- Magnitude
- 5.1
- Moderate · mwc
- Depth
- 65 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
674 tons of TNT
That is about 1/22 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 1 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
62 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Birds Head and Sunda plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
65 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 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.7 on December 27, 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 1,859 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.790 km NE of Tobelo, IndonesiaSeptember 8, 1966 · 190 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.7148 km SE of Tondano, IndonesiaMay 14, 1932 · 179 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.7121 km E of Bitung, IndonesiaAugust 10, 1968 · 86 km W of this epicenter
- 7.564 km NNW of Ternate, IndonesiaJune 25, 1907 · 31 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.5126 km WNW of Ternate, IndonesiaJanuary 21, 2007 · 96 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.5146 km NW of Ternate, IndonesiaAugust 14, 1986 · 59 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.5210 km SSE of Sarangani, PhilippinesAugust 17, 1912 · 251 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.3108 km SE of Tondano, IndonesiaMay 5, 1908 · 204 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 27 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 · 288 km away
2,806 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1845M7.0
N Sulawesi: Menado, Tikala, Tomohon
8 Feb 1845 · 239 km away · intensity IX
118 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1855
Maluku: Ternate Island
14 Jul 1855 · 90 km away · intensity IX
34 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1994M7.0
Kau
21 Jan 1994 · 102 km away
9 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1932M7.7
Sulawesi: Kakas,Langowan,Poso,Tondano
14 May 1932 · 179 km away · intensity VII
7 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 2007M7.5
Molucca Islands: N
21 Jan 2007 · 96 km away
4 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.