A significant M5.3 earthquake struck under land 77 kilometer from Kokopo in Papua New Guinea in the morning of Tuesday November 7th, 2023.
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Earthquake Summary
The earthquake struck on land in Papua New Guinea, 77 kilometer (48 mi) east of Kokopo in East New Britain. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 48 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.
| Date and Time: | Nov 7, 2023 10:53 (Port Moresby Time) - Nov 7, 2023 00:53 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 77 km east of Kokopo, East New Britain, Papua New Guinea. Coordinates 4°18'55"S 152°57'59"E. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 5.3 Detected by 10 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.098 . |
| Depth: | 48 km (30 mi) A quite shallow depth. |
| Tsunami Risk: | Tsunami very unlikely While this was a shallow earthquake in a coastal area, it appears to have occurred under land (15 km from the sea) with a magnitude that is usually not strong enough to cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here. |
Nearby towns and cities
This earthquake may have been felt in Papua New Guinea . Kokopo in East New Britain, Papua New Guinea is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 77 kilometer (48 mi) east of Kokopo.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 77 km (48 mi) W from epicenter |
Kokopo East New Britain, Papua New Guinea. |
Aftershocks detected
After this earthquake struck, 1 smaller aftershock occurred. A 4 magnitude earthquake hit 1 hr later 38 km (24 mi) north-northeast of this earthquake.
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
| Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Shock This Earthquake |
M 5.3 |
Nov 7, 2023 10:53 (Port Moresby Time) | - |
| Aftershock | M 4.0 |
1 hr later Nov 7, 2023 12:11 (Port Moresby Time) | 38 km (24 mi) NNE from Main Shock. |
More earthquakes coming?
The risk of aftershocks decreases rapidly over time. Usually, aftershocks are at least one order of magnitude lower than a main shock.
In only six percent of cases, significant earthquakes are followed by a larger main shock, making the current earthquake a foreshock. While the chance of this happening is not so large, it is adviced to maintain cautiousness in the hours and days following a major earthquake.
Read: How to Stay Safe during an Earthquake (cdc.gov).Earthquakes like this happen often in the region
Earthquakes of this strength are very common in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since October 5th, 2023, when a 5.4 magnitude earthquake hit 57 km (35 mi) further east-southeast. An even stronger magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck on December 17th, 2016.
In total, 209 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.3 or higher have been registered within 300km (186 mi) of this epicenter in the past 10 years. This comes down to an average of once every 17 days.
Tsunami very unlikely
While MAG-6.5+ earthquakes may cause tsunami's, it appears that the epicenter of this earthquake hit under land. In addition, the reported depth is deeper than 100km, making the risk of a tsunami even less likely. However always stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.
Tsunami Risk Factors
| Factor | Under Sea? | MAG-6.5 or stronger? | Shallow depth? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Explanation | Almost all tsunami's are caused by earthquakes with their epicenter under sea or very near the sea. However stay cautious in coastal areas as earthquakes on land may cause landslides into sea, potentially still causing a local tsunami. | Under MAG 6.5: Very unlikely to cause a tsunami. MAG 6.5 to 7.5: Destructive tsunami's do occur, but are uncommon. Likely to observe small sea level changes. MAG 7.6+: Earthquakes with these magnitudes might produce destructive tsunami's. |
Most destructive tsunami's are caused by shallow earthquakes with a depth between 0 and 100km under the surface of the earth. Deeper tsunami's are unlikely to displace to ocean floor. |
| This Earthquake | This earthquake appears to have struck on land near a coastal area (15 km from the sea). | Not this earthquake. This earthquake had a magnitude of 5.3. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami. |
This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 48 km (30 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami. |
Sources
Last updated 03/12/23 01:38 (). As more information on this earthquake becomes available this article will be updated. This article is automatically composed based on data originating from multiple sources.
- US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us7000l99d
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20231107_0000008
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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