In the Solomon Sea 238 kilometer from Honiara, Solomon Islands, a shallow and significant MAG-5.3 earthquake occurred in the early afternoon of Friday September 27th, 2024.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the Solomon Sea, 40 kilometers (25 mi) off the coast of Solomon Islands, 238 kilometer south-east of Honiara. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 10 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.
| Date and Time: | Sep 27, 2024 13:23 (Guadalcanal Time) - Sep 27, 2024 02:23 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 238 km SE of Honiara, Solomon Islands. Coordinates 10°57'14"S 161°28'54"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: | 10 km (6 mi) A very shallow depth. |
| Tsunami Risk: | Low tsunami risk Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 do not usually cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here. |
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 238 kilometer (148 mi) south-east of Honiara.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 238 km (148 mi) NW from epicenter |
Honiara Honiara, Solomon Islands. |
Aftershocks detected
This main shock was followed by 1 smaller aftershock. A 5 magnitude earthquake hit 2 days later 13 km (8 mi) southwest of this earthquake.
Before this earthquake struck, 1 smaller foreshock occurred. Roughly 2 days before this earthquake, a foreshock measuring MAG-4.6 was detected nearby this earthquake.
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
| Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreshock | M 4.6 |
2 days earlier Sep 25, 2024 13:04 (Guadalcanal Time) | 77 km (48 mi) ESE from Main Shock. |
| Main Shock This Earthquake |
M 5.3 |
Sep 27, 2024 13:23 (Guadalcanal Time) | - |
| Aftershock | M 5.0 |
2 days later Sep 29, 2024 02:40 (Guadalcanal Time) | 13 km (8 mi) SW 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 April 12th, 2024, when a 5.8 magnitude earthquake hit 96 km (59 mi) further north-northwest. An even stronger magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck on December 8th, 2016.
In total, 91 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 month.
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
| 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 5.3. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami. |
This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 10 km (6 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami. |
Sources
Last updated 04/10/24 02:48 (). This article contains currently available information about the earthquake and is automatically composed. We continue to update this article up to a few days after the earthquake occurred.
- US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us7000ngqn
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20240927_0000029
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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