A significant Magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck in the South China Sea 154 kilometer from Kaohsiung, Taiwan in the night of Wednesday January 22nd, 2025.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the South China Sea, 63 kilometers (39 mi) off the coast of Taiwan, 154 kilometer south-southeast of Kaohsiung. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 39 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.
| Date and Time: | Jan 22, 2025 02:48 (Taipei Time) - Jan 21, 2025 18:48 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 154 km SSE of Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Coordinates 21°24'49"N 121°3'41"E. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 5.1 Detected by 23 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.065 . |
| Depth: | 39 km (24 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 Taiwan . The closest significant population center near the earthquake is Hengchun in Pingtung County, Taiwan. Hengchun is located 73 kilometer (45 mi) south-southeast of the epicenter.
Major cities near this earthquake: Kaohsiung is located 154 km to the north-northwest. Tainan is located 196 km to the north-northwest. Hualien City is located 290 km to the north.
An overview of nearby towns and cities is available in the overview below.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 73 km (45 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Hengchun Pingtung County, Taiwan. |
| 133 km (83 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Donggang Pingtung County, Taiwan. |
| 154 km (96 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Kaohsiung Kaohsiung, Taiwan. |
| 196 km (122 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Tainan Tainan City, Taiwan. |
| 200 km (124 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Yujing Tainan City, Taiwan. |
| 261 km (162 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Douliu Yunlin County, Taiwan. |
| 261 km (162 mi) N from epicenter |
Lugu Nantou County, Taiwan. |
| 281 km (175 mi) N from epicenter |
Nantou Nantou County, Taiwan. |
| 283 km (176 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Magong Penghu County , Taiwan. |
| 284 km (176 mi) N from epicenter |
Puli Nantou County, Taiwan. |
| 286 km (178 mi) N from epicenter |
Zhongxing New Village Nantou County, Taiwan. |
| 287 km (178 mi) N from epicenter |
Yuanlin Changhua County, Taiwan. |
| 290 km (180 mi) N from epicenter |
Hualien City Hualien County, Taiwan. |
3 Aftershocks detected
After this earthquake struck, 3 smaller aftershocks occurred. At a distance of 82 km (51 mi) north-northeast of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 13 hrs later. It measured a magnitude of 4.9
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
| Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Shock This Earthquake |
M 5.1 |
Jan 22, 2025 02:48 (Taipei Time) | - |
| Aftershock | M 3.3 |
18 mins later Jan 22, 2025 03:06 (Taipei Time) | 67 km (42 mi) W from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.5 |
8 hrs later Jan 22, 2025 10:30 (Taipei Time) | 30 km (19 mi) SSE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 4.9 |
13 hrs later Jan 22, 2025 16:11 (Taipei Time) | 82 km (51 mi) NNE from Main Shock. |
More earthquakes coming?
Earthquakes can create aftershocks. These are generally at least 1 magnitude lower than any main shock, and as time passes the chance and strength of aftershocks decreases.
The chance that a significant earthquake like this one is followed by an even larger earthquake is not so large. On average, scientists estimate a 94% chance that a major earthquake will not be followed by an even larger one. It is still adviced to be aware of this risk
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 January 20th, 2025, when a 6 magnitude earthquake hit 211 km (131 mi) further north-northwest. An even stronger magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck on April 2nd, 2024.
In total, 110 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 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 5.1. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami. |
This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 39 km (24 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami. |
Sources
Last updated 24/01/25 18:08 (). 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 us6000plh9
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20250121_0000256
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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