In the night of Sunday December 22nd, 2024, an unusually powerful MAG-5.3 earthquake hit under land 275 kilometer from Upington in South Africa.
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Earthquake Summary
The earthquake struck on land in South Africa, 275 kilometer (171 mi) southwest of Upington in Northern Cape. 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: | Dec 22, 2024 02:51 (Johannesburg Time) - Dec 22, 2024 00:51 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 275 km SW of Upington, Northern Cape, South Africa. Coordinates 30°25'20"S 19°32'50"E. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 5.3 Detected by 80 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.066 . |
| Depth: | 10 km (6 mi) A very shallow depth. |
| Tsunami Risk: | Tsunami very unlikely While this was a shallow earthquake, it appears to have occurred under land with a magnitude not strong enough to cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here. |
Nearby towns and cities
This earthquake may have been felt in South Africa . Located 275 kilometer (171 mi) southwest of the epicenter of this earthquake, Upington (Northern Cape, South Africa) is the nearest significant population center.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 275 km (171 mi) NE from epicenter |
Upington Northern Cape, South Africa. |
Shaking reported by 437 people in 2 countries
People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 437 people have reported shaking in 24 places in 2 countries (South Africa, Namibia).We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.
Places with most reports:
- Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa: 219 people.
- Stellenbosch, Western Cape, South Africa: 55 people.
- Vredendal, Western Cape, South Africa: 28 people.
- Knysna, Western Cape, South Africa: 25 people.
- Somerset West, Western Cape, South Africa: 19 people.
- Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa: 16 people.
- Mosselbay, Western Cape, South Africa: 11 people.
- George, Western Cape, South Africa: 9 people.
- Atlantis, Western Cape, South Africa: 9 people.
- Saldanha, Western Cape, South Africa: 8 people.
2 Aftershocks detected
After this earthquake struck, 2 smaller aftershocks occurred. Just 1 day after this main shock, an earthquake measuring MAG-3.4 was detected 17 km (11 mi) west-southwest of this earthquake.
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
| Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Shock This Earthquake |
M 5.3 |
Dec 22, 2024 02:51 (Johannesburg Time) | - |
| Aftershock | M 3.0 |
3 hrs later Dec 22, 2024 05:28 (Johannesburg Time) | 8 km (5 mi) W from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.4 |
1 day later Dec 23, 2024 11:20 (Johannesburg Time) | 17 km (11 mi) WSW from Main Shock. |
More earthquakes coming?
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).This is an unusually powerful earthquake
No earthquake of this strength has struck this region for a long time. Our data goes back 10 years, and no earthquakes measuring a magnitude of 5.3 or higher have been detected within 300 km (186 mi) of this epicenter.
Tsunami very unlikely
While MAG-6.5+ earthquakes may cause tsunami's, it appears that the epicenter of this earthquake hit under land. In addition, the reported depth is deeper than 100km, making the risk of a tsunami even less likely. However always 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 | Not this earthquake. This earthquake appears to have struck on land far from any coast. |
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 23/01/25 03:08 (). 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.
- US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us7000p0n9
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20241222_0000006
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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