Significant M5.8 Earthquake hit in the Solomon Sea 134km from Honiara (Solomon Islands) on Saturday Night.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on April 12th, 2024. Last updated May 1st, 2024.

In the Solomon Sea 134 kilometer from Honiara, Solomon Islands, a significant Magnitude 5.8 earthquake occurred in the night of Saturday April 13th, 2024. Shaking may have been felt by a total of 530 thousand people.

Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the Solomon Sea, 34 kilometers (21 mi) off the coast of Solomon Islands, 134 kilometer south-east of Honiara. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 42 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Apr 13, 2024 02:59 (Guadalcanal Time) - Apr 12, 2024 15:59 Universal Time.
Location:	134 km SE of Honiara, Solomon Islands. Coordinates 10°9'37"S 160°55'20"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.8 Detected by 47 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.045 .
Depth:	42 km (26 mi) A quite shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	V Moderate On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Low tsunami risk Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 do not usually cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Minimal impact predicted

Based on scientific estimates by the US Geographic Survey (USGS), the risk of high fatalities for this earthquake is classified at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 fatalities, and a 96% chance that the number of fatalities falls no higher than 10.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact, and a 96% chance that the economic impact of this earthquake falls no higher than 10 million USD.

Roughly 530 thousand people exposed to shaking

An estimated 530 thousand have been exposed to shaking (An MMI or Modified Mercalli Intensity level II or higher) as a result of this earthquake according scientific estimates published by the USGS.

Moderate shaking and very light damage may have been experienced by an estimated 2,950 people. At V, it is the highest MMI level this earthquake has caused. The majority of people (roughly 290 thousand) live in an area exposed to level IV, where light shaking and likely no damage is expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Solomon Islands .

People	MMI Level	Shaking	Damage
0	I	Not noticable	None
0	II	Very weak	None
238,100	III	Weak	Probably none
287,700	IV	Light	Likely none
2,950	V	Moderate	Very light
0	VI	Strong	Light
0	VII	Very Strong	Moderate
0	VIII	Severe	Moderate to heavy
0	IX	Violent	Heavy
0	X	Extreme	Very heavy

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Solomon Islands . Honiara in Honiara, Solomon Islands is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 134 kilometer (83 mi) south-east of Honiara. The intensity of shaking and damage in Honiara is estimated to be around level III on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (weak shaking, probably no damage).

Overview of nearby places

Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.
Distance	Place	Intensity (MMI)
134 km (83 mi) NW from epicenter	Honiara Honiara, Solomon Islands.	III Weak

Earthquake Intensity Map

The graph below overlays a map of the region around the epicenter with earthquake intensity data provided by the US Geographic Survey. The highest intensity level detected for this earthquake is V.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

Earthquake Intensity Map based on Shakemap Data provided by USGS.

Shaking reported by 3 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 3 people have reported shaking in one place in Solomon Islands.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

Honiara, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands: 3 people.

Aftershocks detected

Since this main shock, 1 smaller aftershock was detected. At a distance of 28 km (17 mi) south-southeast of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 1 day later. It measured a magnitude of 4.3

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

Detected MAG2.5+ earthquakes within within 100km (62 mi), that occurred in the three days before and after the main shock.
Classification	Magnitude	When	Where
Main Shock This Earthquake	M 5.8	Apr 13, 2024 02:59 (Guadalcanal Time)	-
Aftershock	M 4.3	1 day later Apr 14, 2024 14:42 (Guadalcanal Time)	28 km (17 mi) SSE from Main Shock.

More earthquakes coming?

Aftershocks are usually at least 1 order of magnitude less strong than main shocks. The more time passes, the smaller the chance and likely strength of any potential aftershocks.

It's always adviced to be cautious of the risk of a larger shock following any significant earthquake, however this risk is fairly small. There is a roughly 94 percent change that no larger main shock will follow in the days following this 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 May 21st, 2023, when a 6.1 magnitude earthquake hit 58 km (36 mi) further east-southeast. An even stronger magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck on December 8th, 2016.

In total, 29 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.8 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 4 months.

Low tsunami risk

DISCLAIMER: We strongly suggest to closely monitor advice from local authorities with regards to tsunami risks. Our analysis is based on automatically collected data from external sources, and these might contain mistakes. In addition, earthquakes can cause landslides that may lead to a tsunami, or be a followed by another, potentially stonger, earthquake.

Based on early data it appears this earthquake was not strong enough (lower than MAG-6.5) to be likely to cause destructive tsunami's. However this earthquake appeared to have hit at a shallow depth under sea, so 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 under the sea.	Not this earthquake. This earthquake had a magnitude of 5.8. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.	This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 42 km (26 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 01/05/24 18:28 (). This article is automatically generated based on available data. We keep checking multiple sources for additional information. This article gets updated as new details on this earthquake become available.