In the afternoon of Thursday October 23rd, 2025, a shallow and significant Magnitude 5.6 earthquake hit in the North Pacific Ocean 199 kilometer from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia. Roughly 230 thousand people may have felt this earthquake.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the North Pacific Ocean, 159 kilometers (99 mi) off the coast of Russia, 199 kilometer south-southeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky in Kamchatka. 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: | Oct 23, 2025 14:31 (Kamchatka Time) - Oct 23, 2025 02:31 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 199 km SSE of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Kamchatka, Russia. Coordinates 51°23'25"N 159°39'11"E. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 5.6 Detected by 22 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.066 . |
| Depth: | 10 km (6 mi) A very shallow depth. |
| Max. Intensity: | IV
Light 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 230 thousand people exposed to shaking
An estimated 230 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 187,600 people were exposed to level III. At this level, weak shaking and probably no damage can be expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Russia .
| People | MMI Level | Shaking | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | I |
Not noticable | None |
| 46,060 | II |
Very weak | None |
| 187,600 | III |
Weak | Probably none |
| 0 | IV |
Light | Likely none |
| 0 | 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 Russia . The closest significant population center near the earthquake is Vilyuchinsk in Kamchatka, Russia. Vilyuchinsk is located 191 kilometer (119 mi) south-southeast of the epicenter. Vilyuchinsk experienced an earthquake intensity (MMI Scale) of roughly III. That level implies weak shaking and probably no damage.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place | Intensity (MMI) |
|---|---|---|
| 191 km (119 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Vilyuchinsk Kamchatka, Russia. |
III
Weak |
| 199 km (124 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky Kamchatka, Russia. |
III
Weak |
| 218 km (135 mi) NNW from epicenter |
Yelizovo Kamchatka, Russia. |
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 IV.
7 Aftershocks detected
This main shock was followed by 7 smaller aftershocks. At a distance of 70 km (44 mi) north-northeast of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 5 hrs later. It measured a magnitude of 4.6
In the days before this main shock, 3 smaller foreshocks were detected. Roughly 1 day before this earthquake, a foreshock measuring MAG-4.7 was detected nearby this earthquake.
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
| Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreshock | M 4.3 |
2 days earlier Oct 21, 2025 17:29 (Kamchatka Time) | 17 km (11 mi) SSW from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 4.7 |
1 day earlier Oct 22, 2025 07:26 (Kamchatka Time) | 37 km (23 mi) WNW from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 4.4 |
23 hrs earlier Oct 22, 2025 15:45 (Kamchatka Time) | 75 km (46 mi) N from Main Shock. |
| Main Shock This Earthquake |
M 5.6 |
Oct 23, 2025 14:31 (Kamchatka Time) | - |
| Aftershock | M 4.6 |
22 mins later Oct 23, 2025 14:53 (Kamchatka Time) | 96 km (60 mi) WNW from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 4.5 |
39 mins later Oct 23, 2025 15:10 (Kamchatka Time) | 62 km (39 mi) SE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 4.6 |
5 hrs later Oct 23, 2025 19:03 (Kamchatka Time) | 70 km (44 mi) NNE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 4.5 |
7 hrs later Oct 23, 2025 21:02 (Kamchatka Time) | 14 km (9 mi) SE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 4.1 |
16 hrs later Oct 24, 2025 06:12 (Kamchatka Time) | 100 km (62 mi) N from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 4.2 |
24 hrs later Oct 24, 2025 14:31 (Kamchatka Time) | 70 km (43 mi) N from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 4.5 |
2 days later Oct 25, 2025 20:44 (Kamchatka Time) | 19 km (12 mi) S 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.
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 October 11th, 2025, when a 5.8 magnitude earthquake hit 241 km (150 mi) further west-southwest. An even stronger magnitude 8.8 earthquake struck on July 29th, 2025.
In total, 70 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.6 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
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 5.6. 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 09/11/25 04:28 (). 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 us6000risn
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20251023_0000024
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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