M7.5 earthquake 72 km S of Panubigan, Philippines

Friday, July 23, 2010, 23:15:10 UTC · 6.776°N, 123.259°E

A magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck 72 km S of Panubigan, Philippines on Friday, July 23, 2010, 23:15:10 UTC, at a depth of 640.6 km (deep). USGS received 30 “Did You Feel It?” reports, with a maximum reported intensity of IV (light). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.6 on July 23, 2010.

Magnitude: 7.5; Major · mwc
Depth: 641 km; Deep
Felt reports: 30; Max intensity IV
Est. shaking: —; No ShakeMap
PAGER alert: None; Not issued
Tsunami: No flag; USGS feed

Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 200 km aftershock search area

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

2.7 megatons of TNT

That is about 178 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 5,623 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

440 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Philippine Sea and Sunda plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.

Depth: deep

641 km

Deep earthquakes (over 300 km) happen deep inside subducting plates. They rarely cause damage, but can be felt faintly over very large distances.

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
Davao, Southern Mindanao, Philippines	III · Weak	3	693 km
Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia	III · Weak	3	2517 km
Ternate, Maluku Utara, Indonesia	III · Weak	2	1027 km
Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia	II · Weak	2	2506 km
Manila, National Capital Region, Philippines	II · Weak	2	1107 km
Iloilo, Western Visayas, Philippines	II · Weak	2	777 km
Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei-Muara, Brunei	IV · Light	1	1139 km
Cogon, Northern Mindanao, Philippines	IV · Light	1	682 km
Dumalag, Western Visayas, Philippines	IV · Light	1	815 km
Bugo, Northern Mindanao, Philippines	III · Weak	1	688 km
Naawan, Northern Mindanao, Philippines	III · Weak	1	675 km
Dadiangas, Southern Mindanao, Philippines	III · Weak	1	681 km

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 200 km

USGS lists 26 M2.5+ earthquakes within 200 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.6 on July 29, 2010. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 442 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 25 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 8,673 recorded deaths. The most severe:

1976M8.0
Mindanao: S
16 Aug 1976 · 106 km away · intensity VI
8,000 deaths$134 million damagetsunami
1955M7.4
Mindanao: Lanao,Ozamiz,Cotabato
31 Mar 1955 · 99 km away · intensity VIII
465 deaths$5 million damagetsunami
1928M7.4
Cotabato,N Coast Of Illana Bay
19 Dec 1928 · 109 km away · intensity VII
97 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
1918M8.3
Mindanao: Cotabato
15 Aug 1918 · 160 km away · intensity X
52 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
1925M6.8
W. Luzon Island, Philippines
5 May 1925 · 287 km away · intensity IX
17 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
2002M7.5
Mindanao
5 Mar 2002 · 137 km away
15 deaths$2 million damagetsunami

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

Nearby trackers