Reviewed by USGSVanuatu16y ago
M5.0 earthquake 41 km NW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu
Saturday, October 2, 2010, 02:54:18 UTC · 17.448°S, 168.069°E
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 41 km NW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu on Saturday, October 2, 2010, 02:54:18 UTC, at a depth of 24.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.2 on October 1, 2010.
- Magnitude
- 5.0
- Moderate · mwc
- Depth
- 24 km
- Shallow
- 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
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
89 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the New Hebrides and Australian plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
24 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
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 75 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 1,299 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 · 285 km S of this epicenter
- 7.999 km SW of Port-Vila, VanuatuDecember 2, 1950 · 112 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.828 km ESE of Isangel, VanuatuJune 16, 1910 · 286 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.663 km NW of Isangel, VanuatuOctober 14, 1913 · 203 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.631 km S of Luganville, VanuatuAugust 11, 1965 · 206 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.592 km ESE of Lakatoro, VanuatuNovember 26, 1999 · 115 km N of this epicenter
- 7.447 km WSW of Norsup, VanuatuNovember 9, 1910 · 172 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.443 km W of Norsup, VanuatuAugust 13, 1965 · 186 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 43 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 37 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1875M8.1
Loyalty Islands: Lifou Island
28 Mar 1875 · 287 km away
26 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1999M7.5
Pentecost
26 Nov 1999 · 115 km away
10 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1971M7.1
Espiritu Santo, Port Vila
27 Oct 1971 · 236 km away · intensity VII
1 deathSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1965M7.6
Vanuatu Islands
11 Aug 1965 · 205 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1973M7.2
Luganville, Lamap
29 Dec 1973 · 287 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1990M6.4
Espiritu Santo
27 Jul 1990 · 242 km away · intensity V
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.