Significant M5.9 Earthquake struck on Thursday Night in the South Pacific Ocean 124km from Kokopo (Papua New Guinea).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on November 6th, 2024. Last updated December 20th, 2024.

In the night of Thursday November 7th, 2024, a significant Magnitude 5.9 earthquake hit in the South Pacific Ocean 124 kilometer from Kokopo, Papua New Guinea. Around 720 thousand people have been exposed to shaking.

Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the South Pacific Ocean, 32 kilometers (20 mi) off the coast of Papua New Guinea, 124 kilometer east-southeast of Kokopo in East New Britain. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 35 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Nov 7, 2024 00:36 (Port Moresby Time) - Nov 6, 2024 14:36 Universal Time.
Location:	124 km ESE of Kokopo, East New Britain, Papua New Guinea. Coordinates 4°45'59"S 153°18'26"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.9 Detected by 51 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.043 .
Depth:	35 km (22 mi) A quite shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	VI Strong 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 720 thousand people exposed to shaking

An estimated 720 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.

An estimated 550 people were exposed to level V. At this level, moderate shaking and very light damage can be expected. Intensity level III was experienced by the majority of people (around 550 thousand). In their region, weak shaking and probably no damage can be expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Papua New Guinea .

People	MMI Level	Shaking	Damage
0	I	Not noticable	None
2,320	II	Very weak	None
551,700	III	Weak	Probably none
160,700	IV	Light	Likely none
550	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 Papua New Guinea . Kokopo in East New Britain, Papua New Guinea is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 124 kilometer (77 mi) east-southeast of Kokopo. Kokopo experienced an earthquake intensity (MMI Scale) of roughly III. That level implies weak shaking and probably no damage.

Overview of nearby places

Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.
Distance	Place	Intensity (MMI)
124 km (77 mi) WNW from epicenter	Kokopo East New Britain, Papua New Guinea.	III Weak
298 km (185 mi) ESE from epicenter	Arawa Bougainville, Papua New Guinea.
362 km (225 mi) WSW from epicenter	Kimbe West New Britain, Papua New Guinea.

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 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.

Aftershocks detected

Since this main shock, 1 smaller aftershock was detected. Just 2 days after this main shock, an earthquake measuring MAG-4 was detected 7 km (4 mi) south-southeast of this earthquake.

Before this earthquake struck, 1 smaller foreshock occurred. Nearby this earthquake a foreshock struck 14 hrs earlier. It measured a magnitude of 4.2

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
Foreshock	M 4.2	14 hrs earlier Nov 6, 2024 10:13 (Port Moresby Time)	89 km (55 mi) W from Main Shock.
Main Shock This Earthquake	M 5.9	Nov 7, 2024 00:36 (Port Moresby Time)	-
Aftershock	M 4.0	2 days later Nov 9, 2024 05:14 (Port Moresby Time)	7 km (4 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 April 14th, 2024, when a 6.5 magnitude earthquake hit 273 km (170 mi) further west-southwest. An even stronger magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck on January 22nd, 2017.

In total, 60 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.9 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 2 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 5.9. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.	This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 35 km (22 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 20/12/24 20:18 (). 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.