Reviewed by USGSIndonesia17y ago
M4.9 earthquake 86 km SSW of Banjar, Indonesia
Wednesday, September 2, 2009, 09:28:46 UTC · 7.961°S, 107.275°E
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck 86 km SSW of Banjar, Indonesia on Wednesday, September 2, 2009, 09:28:46 UTC, at a depth of 59.0 km (shallow). USGS received 16 “Did You Feel It?” reports, with a maximum reported intensity of VI (strong). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.3 on September 2, 2009.
- Magnitude
- 4.9
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 59 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 16
- Max intensity VI
- 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
338 tons of TNT
That is about 1/45 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 1 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
187 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
59 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
Reports sent by people to USGS, grouped by place (most reports first). Intensity uses the Modified Mercalli scale (I–X): what people felt, not the magnitude.
| Place | Intensity | Reports | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jakarta, Jakarta, Indonesia | V · Moderate | 9 | 211 km |
| Bandung, Jawa Barat, Indonesia | V · Moderate | 2 | 135 km |
| Serpong, Banten, Indonesia | VI · Strong | 1 | 202 km |
| Karawang, Jawa Barat, Indonesia | III · Weak | 1 | 192 km |
| Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia | III · Weak | 1 | 880 km |
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 3 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.9 on September 28, 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 422 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.7226 km SSW of Singaparna, IndonesiaJuly 17, 2006 · 148 km S of this epicenter
- 7.535 km NNE of Rengasdengklok, IndonesiaAugust 8, 2007 · 234 km N of this epicenter
- 7.487 km SSW of Srandakan, IndonesiaJuly 23, 1943 · 292 km E of this epicenter
- 7.066 km SSW of Banjar, IndonesiaSeptember 2, 2009 · 20 km N of this epicenter
- 7.030 km WNW of Labuan, IndonesiaApril 1, 1943 · 264 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.850 km WSW of Labuan, IndonesiaJuly 3, 1954 · 251 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.829 km SW of Labuan, IndonesiaOctober 25, 2000 · 240 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 32 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 1,715 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 2006M7.7
Java
17 Jul 2006 · 148 km away
802 deaths$55 million damagetsunami
- 1924
Java: Wonosobo
2 Dec 1924 · 298 km away · intensity IX
727 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 2009M7.0
Java
2 Sep 2009 · 20 km away
81 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1924
Java
12 Nov 1924 · 288 km away
60 deaths
- 1979M6.1
Java
2 Nov 1979 · 113 km away
30 deaths$16 million damage
- 1875
W Java: Kuningan
25 Oct 1875 · 163 km away · intensity VIII
7 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.