Indonesia faced 2186 major earthquakes in 2022. More than any other country, making the island archipelago the most earthquake-struck country on earth for the second year in a row. Mexico was the most earthquake-prone country in 2020, but held the second spot in both 2021 and 2022.
On average in all of 2022, a major magnitude 4.0+ earthquake struck within 300 kilometers of Indonesian land every 4 hours. Mexico faced a major earthquake every 4 hours and 54 minutes. Japan holds the third spot with a major earthquake every 7 hours, followed by The Philippines averaging an earthquake every 9 hours and 36 minutes.
The so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire", of which Indonesia is part too, is the most earthquake-prone region in the world. According to the Earthquakelist.org Top Countries List, the 10 most earthquake-struck countries are all bordering the Pacific Ocean. Iran is the first country in a different region to appear on the list, at position 14.
Impact
The majority of these earthquakes did not have any major impact, including Indonesia's strongest earthquake on record. The magnitude of 6.9 earthquake struck on November 18th 205 km off the coast of Bengkulu, but no significant damage or casualties were registered.
However magnitude is not the only factor determining the impact of an earthquake. The November 2022 earthquake near Sukabumi in West Java might have only registered a magnitude of 5.6, but it struck in a densely populated and landslide-prone area. The Cianjur Government claimed over 600 people lost their lives.
Slightly less earthquakes
Indonesia's strongest earthquake in 2022 had a lower magnitude than strongest earthquakes in earlier years. In each of 2019, 2020 and 2021 Indonesia experienced earthquakes between 7.2 and 7.4 in magnitude. In addition, the number of major did actually decrease slightly by 5% in 2022 compared with 2021.
This publication is based on the Earthquakelist.org 2022 Top Countries Report. The site relies on reliable earthquake data from the US Geographic Survey (USGS) and the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) for its calculations. Taken into account are any magnitude 4+ earthquakes occurring within 300 kilometers of countries.
Sources
- 2022 Top Countries Report (Earthquakelist.org)
- Indonesia Earthquakes Report (Earthquakelist.org)
- Strongest Earthquakes Report (Earthquakelist.org)
