Reviewed by USGSIndonesia17y ago
M5.0 earthquake 89 km SSE of Padang, Indonesia
Monday, October 19, 2009, 16:35:10 UTC · 1.740°S, 100.541°E
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 89 km SSE of Padang, Indonesia on Monday, October 19, 2009, 16:35:10 UTC, at a depth of 73.8 km (intermediate). USGS received 4 “Did You Feel It?” reports, with a maximum reported intensity of III (weak). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.3 on October 1, 2009.
- Magnitude
- 5.0
- Moderate · mb
- Depth
- 74 km
- Intermediate
- Felt reports
- 4
- Max intensity III
- 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
477 tons of TNT
That is about 1/32 of the Hiroshima bomb. Each whole step in magnitude is about 32 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
70 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the North Andes and South American plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: intermediate
74 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
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Padang, Sumatera Barat, Indonesia | III · Weak | 3 | 116 km |
| Padang Sidempuan, Sumatera Utara, Indonesia | II · Weak | 1 | 381 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 75 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.4 on October 25, 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 486 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 · 104 km S of this epicenter
- 7.726 km S of Sijunjung, IndonesiaJune 9, 1943 · 99 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.630 km WSW of Pariaman, IndonesiaSeptember 30, 2009 · 136 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.676 km SSW of Sungai Penuh, IndonesiaJune 3, 1909 · 130 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.573 km WSW of Bengkulu, IndonesiaJune 25, 1914 · 280 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.478 km NNW of Curup, IndonesiaJune 8, 1943 · 221 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.2164 km WSW of Sungai Penuh, IndonesiaFebruary 25, 2008 · 104 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 1,611 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 2009M7.5
Sumatra: Padang
30 Sep 2009 · 136 km away
1,117 deaths$2.2 billion damagetsunami
- 1797M8.0
Sw. Sumatra
10 Feb 1797 · 259 km away · intensity IX
300 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1995M6.8
Sumatera, Jambi Province
6 Oct 1995 · 105 km away
84 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 2007M6.4
Sumatra: Southern
6 Mar 2007 · 139 km away · intensity VIII
67 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1914M7.6
Sumatera
25 Jun 1914 · 281 km away
20 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1979M6.6
S Sumatera
15 Dec 1979 · 297 km away
8 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.