Reviewed by USGSVanuatu18y ago
M4.5 earthquake 82 km N of Isangel, Vanuatu
Friday, December 12, 2008, 11:30:42 UTC · 18.802°S, 169.210°E
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 82 km N of Isangel, Vanuatu on Friday, December 12, 2008, 11:30:42 UTC, at a depth of 239.8 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.6 on December 5, 2008.
- Magnitude
- 4.5
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 240 km
- Intermediate
- 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
160 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the New Hebrides and Australian plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: intermediate
240 km
Intermediate-depth earthquakes usually break inside a plate that is sinking into the mantle. Shaking spreads over a wide area but is gentler at the epicenter than a shallow quake of the same size.
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 M4.5 on January 8, 2009. 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 1,143 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.11920 Vanuatu EarthquakeSeptember 20, 1920 · 152 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.999 km SW of Port-Vila, VanuatuDecember 2, 1950 · 171 km W of this epicenter
- 7.828 km ESE of Isangel, VanuatuJune 16, 1910 · 96 km S of this epicenter
- 7.663 km NW of Isangel, VanuatuOctober 14, 1913 · 44 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.592 km ESE of Lakatoro, VanuatuNovember 26, 1999 · 285 km N of this epicenter
- 7.447 km NW of Isangel, VanuatuOctober 11, 1992 · 57 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.363 km S of Port-Vila, VanuatuJuly 23, 1961 · 112 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.371 km SW of Isangel, VanuatuApril 9, 2008 · 145 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 30 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 36 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1875M8.1
Loyalty Islands: Lifou Island
28 Mar 1875 · 153 km away
26 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1999M7.5
Pentecost
26 Nov 1999 · 285 km away
10 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1920M8.1
Loyalty Islands
20 Sep 1920 · 152 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1878M7.5
Tanna Island
10 Jan 1878 · 78 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1961M7.3
Vanuatu Islands
23 Jul 1961 · 94 km away · intensity VI
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 2002M7.2
Efate, Port Vila
2 Jan 2002 · 196 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.