QuakeScout
Magnitude4.8

Reviewed by USGSSolomon Islands16y ago

M4.8 earthquake 176 km SSE of Lata, Solomon Islands

Thursday, May 27, 2010, 01:52:14 UTC · 12.143°S, 166.543°E

A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 176 km SSE of Lata, Solomon Islands on Thursday, May 27, 2010, 01:52:14 UTC, at a depth of 82.5 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.9 on May 22, 2010.

Magnitude
4.8
Light · mb
Depth
83 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 earthquake

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

73 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the African and South American plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.

Depth: intermediate

83 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 has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the 30 days after this event.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 1,458 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 7.9199 km S of Lata, Solomon IslandsJuly 17, 1980 · 80 km SW of this epicenter
  2. 7.8146 km SSE of Lata, Solomon IslandsDecember 31, 1966 · 32 km N of this epicenter
  3. 7.8186 km NNW of Sola, VanuatuDecember 17, 1957 · 34 km SE of this epicenter
  4. 7.8196 km NW of Sola, VanuatuOctober 7, 2009 · 45 km SW of this epicenter
  5. 7.745 km NNE of Port-Olry, VanuatuMay 20, 1965 · 288 km S of this epicenter
  6. 7.7171 km NNW of Sola, VanuatuApril 21, 1997 · 51 km S of this epicenter
  7. 7.7148 km NW of Sola, VanuatuOctober 7, 2009 · 96 km S of this epicenter
  8. 7.7138 km SSE of Lata, Solomon IslandsJuly 18, 1934 · 39 km N 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. The most severe:

  1. 1973M7.5

    Espiritu Santo, Luganille

    28 Dec 1973 · 258 km away · intensity VII

    Moderate damage ($1–5M)

  2. 1910M7.2

    Espiritu Santo

    10 Nov 1910 · 207 km away

    Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

  3. 2002M5.9

    Mere Lava Island

    27 Nov 2002 · 296 km away

    Moderate damage ($1–5M)

  4. 1997M7.7

    Santa Cruz Islands; Vanuatu

    21 Apr 1997 · 51 km away

    Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami

  5. 1980M7.5

    Santa Cruz Islands: Banks

    8 Jul 1980 · 35 km away

    Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami

  6. 1980M6.1

    Vanuatu Islands

    12 May 1980 · 297 km away · intensity VI

    Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

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