In the evening of Sunday October 27th, 2024, a shallow and significant Magnitude 5.1 earthquake hit in the Philippine Sea 7 kilometer from Hualien City, Taiwan. Another country near the epicenter is Japan.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the Philippine Sea, right off the coast of Taiwan (4 mi offshore), 7 kilometer east of Hualien City in Hualien County. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 29 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.
Date and Time: | Oct 27, 2024 18:21 (Taipei Time) - Oct 27, 2024 10:21 Universal Time. |
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Location: | 7 km east of Hualien City, Hualien County, Taiwan. Coordinates 23°58'28"N 121°40'14"E. |
Map: | Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
Magnitude: | MAG 5.1 Detected by 78 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.065 . |
Depth: | 29 km (18 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
Taiwan and Japan are both located within 300km distance of the epicenter of the earthquake.
The closest significant population center near the earthquake is Hualien City in Hualien County, Taiwan. Hualien City is located 7 kilometer (4 mi) east of the epicenter.
Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. Taipei is located 120 km to the north. Hualien City is located 7 km to the west. Taichung is located 102 km to the west.
The table below provides an overview of all places in proximity of today's earthquake.
Overview of nearby places
Distance | Place |
---|---|
7 km (4 mi) W from epicenter |
Hualien City Hualien County, Taiwan. |
71 km (44 mi) W from epicenter |
Puli Nantou County, Taiwan. |
87 km (54 mi) N from epicenter |
Yilan Yilan County, Taiwan. |
97 km (60 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Lugu Nantou County, Taiwan. |
100 km (62 mi) W from epicenter |
Zhongxing New Village Nantou County, Taiwan. |
102 km (63 mi) W from epicenter |
Taichung Taichung City, Taiwan. |
103 km (64 mi) W from epicenter |
Nantou Nantou County, Taiwan. |
108 km (67 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Daxi Taoyuan City , Taiwan. |
111 km (69 mi) W from epicenter |
Yuanlin Changhua County, Taiwan. |
116 km (72 mi) NW from epicenter |
Hsinchu Hsinchu County, Taiwan. |
117 km (73 mi) N from epicenter |
Banqiao New Taipei City, Taiwan. |
118 km (73 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Douliu Yunlin County, Taiwan. |
119 km (74 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Taoyuan City Taoyuan City , Taiwan. |
120 km (75 mi) N from epicenter |
Taipei Taipei City, Taiwan. |
128 km (80 mi) N from epicenter |
Keelung Keelung, Taiwan. |
155 km (96 mi) SW from epicenter |
Yujing Tainan City, Taiwan. |
185 km (115 mi) SW from epicenter |
Tainan Tainan City, Taiwan. |
205 km (127 mi) SW from epicenter |
Kaohsiung Kaohsiung, Taiwan. |
209 km (130 mi) SW from epicenter |
Donggang Pingtung County, Taiwan. |
217 km (135 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Magong Penghu County , Taiwan. |
239 km (149 mi) SSW from epicenter |
Hengchun Pingtung County, Taiwan. |
256 km (159 mi) E from epicenter |
Ishigaki Okinawa, Japan. |
Shaking reported by 22 people
People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 22 people have reported shaking in 6 places, all within Taiwan.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.
Places with most reports:
- Chushan, Nantou, Taiwan: 16 people.
- Yungho, Taipei Hsien, Taiwan: 2 people.
- Hsinchu, Hsinchu Shih, Taiwan: 1 person.
- Fenglin, Hualien, Taiwan: 1 person.
- Hualian, Hualien, Taiwan: 1 person.
- Taichung, Taichung Shih, Taiwan: 1 person.
Aftershocks detected
In the days before this main shock, 1 smaller foreshock was detected. Nearby this earthquake a foreshock struck 3 days earlier. It measured a magnitude of 4.2
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
---|---|---|---|
Foreshock | M 4.2 |
3 days earlier Oct 24, 2024 23:59 (Taipei Time) | 87 km (54 mi) ENE from Main Shock. |
Main Shock This Earthquake |
M 5.1 |
Oct 27, 2024 18:21 (Taipei Time) | - |
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.
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 August 15th, 2024, when a 6.1 magnitude earthquake hit 27 km (17 mi) further south-southeast. An even stronger magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck on April 2nd, 2024.
In total, 142 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 26 days.
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? |
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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 29 km (18 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami. |
Sources
Last updated 02/11/24 09:58 (). 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.