Significant M5.5 Earthquake struck on Monday Evening in the Indian Ocean 116km from Yogyakarta (Indonesia).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on August 26th, 2024. Last updated September 17th, 2024.

In the Indian Ocean 116 kilometer from Yogyakarta, Indonesia, a significant M5.5 earthquake occurred in the evening of Monday August 26th, 2024. Around 42 million people have been exposed to shaking.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the Indian Ocean, 84 kilometers (52 mi) off the coast of Indonesia, 116 kilometer south of Yogyakarta. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 47 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Aug 26, 2024 19:57 (Jakarta Time) - Aug 26, 2024 12:57 Universal Time.
Location:	116 km south of Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Coordinates 8°50'20"S 110°16'34"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.5 Detected by 20 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.069 .
Depth:	47 km (29 mi) A quite shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	IV Light 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 42 million people exposed to shaking

The USGS has published a report estimating the number of people exposed to this earthquake. Acoording to their analysis, roughly 42 million have been exposed to shaking at an MMI level of II or higher.

The highest earthquake impact level for this earthquake is IV, which corresponds with light shaking and likely no damage. Roughly 7,182,000 people are expected to be exposed to this level. Intensity level III was experienced by the majority of people (around 35 million). In their region, weak shaking and probably no damage can be expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Indonesia .

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Indonesia . Bambanglipuro in Yogyakarta, Indonesia is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 99 kilometer (62 mi) south of Bambanglipuro. Bambanglipuro experienced an earthquake intensity (MMI Scale) of roughly IV. That level implies light shaking and likely no damage.

Major cities near this earthquake: Semarang is located 206 km to the north (intensity unknown, possibly low). Yogyakarta is located 116 km to the north and experienced an intensity of IV (light shaking, likely no damage). Surakarta is located 155 km to the north-northeast and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage).

An overview of nearby towns and cities is available in the overview below. If places don't have intensity data available, it likely means the experienced impact in those places was fairly small.

Overview of nearby places

Earthquake Intensity Map

The intensity in shaking and damage by this earthquake is illustrated through the map below. The highest intensity measured for this earthquake is IV.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

Shaking reported by 20 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 20 people have reported shaking in 16 places, all within Indonesia.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

• Depok, Yogyakarta, Indonesia: 3 people.
• Kebumen, Jawa Tengah, Indonesia: 2 people.
• Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta, Indonesia: 2 people.
• Cikeruh, Jawa Barat, Indonesia: 1 person.
• Karawang, Jawa Barat, Indonesia: 1 person.
• Pamulang, Jawa Barat, Indonesia: 1 person.
• Klaten, Jawa Tengah, Indonesia: 1 person.
• Muntilan, Jawa Tengah, Indonesia: 1 person.
• Prambanan, Jawa Tengah, Indonesia: 1 person.
• Wengon, Jawa Tengah, Indonesia: 1 person.

Aftershocks detected

This main shock was prefaced by 1 smaller foreshock. Nearby this earthquake a foreshock struck 53 mins earlier. It measured a magnitude of 2.9

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

More earthquakes coming?

Earthquakes can create aftershocks. These are generally at least 1 magnitude lower than any main shock, and as time passes the chance and strength of aftershocks decreases.

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.

Earthquakes like this are common in the region

Earthquakes of this strength occur quite regularly in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since June 30th, 2023, when a 5.9 magnitude earthquake hit 35 km (22 mi) further northwest. An even stronger magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck on December 15th, 2017.

In total, 12 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.5 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 10 months.

Low tsunami risk

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

Sources

Last updated 17/09/24 15:38 (). 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.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us7000n9hl
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20240826_0000115
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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