A significant MAG-5.1 earthquake struck in the Makassar Strait 163 kilometer from Palu, Indonesia in the night of Sunday October 20th, 2024.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the Makassar Strait, right off the coast of Indonesia (6 mi offshore), 163 kilometer north of Palu in Central Sulawesi. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 52 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.
| Date and Time: | Oct 20, 2024 02:07 (Makassar Time) - Oct 19, 2024 18:07 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 163 km north of Palu, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. Coordinates 0°33'15"N 119°52'46"E. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 5.1 Detected by 13 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.086 . |
| Depth: | 52 km (32 mi) A quite 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 Indonesia . The closest significant population center near the earthquake is Palu in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. Palu is located 163 kilometer (101 mi) north of the epicenter.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 163 km (101 mi) S from epicenter |
Palu Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. |
| 238 km (148 mi) SSE from epicenter |
Poso Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. |
| 270 km (168 mi) W from epicenter |
Bontang East Kalimantan, Indonesia. |
Risk of aftershocks?
We monitor for foreshocks or aftershocks that have a magnitude of 2.5+ and occur within 100km (62 mi) of the epicenter of this earthquake. So far no such earthquakes have been detected.
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 September 15th, 2024, when a 5.5 magnitude earthquake hit 179 km (111 mi) further west-northwest. An even stronger magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck on September 28th, 2018.
In total, 42 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.1 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 3 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
| 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 5.1. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami. |
This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 52 km (32 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami. |
Sources
Last updated 22/10/24 17:48 (). 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 us6000nzru
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20241019_0000179
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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