In the early afternoon of Sunday December 21st, 2025, a significant M5.1 earthquake hit in the Banda Sea 209 kilometer from Tual, Indonesia.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the Banda Sea, 50 kilometers (31 mi) off the coast of Indonesia, 209 kilometer southwest of Tual in Maluku. 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: | Dec 21, 2025 13:02 (Jayapura Time) - Dec 21, 2025 04:02 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 209 km SW of Tual, Maluku, Indonesia. Coordinates 6°47'42"S 131°15'50"E. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 5.1 Detected by 31 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.103 . |
| 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 Indonesia . The closest significant population center near the earthquake is Tual in Maluku, Indonesia. Tual is located 209 kilometer (130 mi) southwest of the epicenter.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 209 km (130 mi) NE from epicenter |
Tual Maluku, Indonesia. |
Aftershocks detected
Since this main shock, 1 smaller aftershock was detected. Just 2 days after this main shock, an earthquake measuring MAG-4.6 was detected 72 km (45 mi) north of this earthquake.
This main shock was prefaced by 1 smaller foreshock. A 4.4 magnitude earthquake hit 3 days earlier nearby.
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
| Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreshock | M 4.4 |
3 days earlier Dec 18, 2025 22:19 (Jayapura Time) | 66 km (41 mi) NNE from Main Shock. |
| Main Shock This Earthquake |
M 5.1 |
Dec 21, 2025 13:02 (Jayapura Time) | - |
| Aftershock | M 4.6 |
2 days later Dec 23, 2025 02:29 (Jayapura Time) | 72 km (45 mi) N 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 December 7th, 2025, when a 5.2 magnitude earthquake hit 30 km (18 mi) further northwest. An even stronger magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck on January 9th, 2023.
In total, 92 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 07/01/26 05:58 (). This article is automatically generated based on available data. We keep checking multiple sources for additional information. This article gets updated as new details on this earthquake become available.
- US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000rwa3
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20251221_0000065
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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