A shallow and significant M5.1 earthquake struck in the Aru Sea 116 kilometer from Tual, Indonesia in the morning of Tuesday February 17th, 2026.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the Aru Sea, 48 kilometers (30 mi) off the coast of Indonesia, 116 kilometer east of Tual in Maluku. 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: | Feb 17, 2026 08:47 (Jayapura Time) - Feb 16, 2026 23:47 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 116 km east of Tual, Maluku, Indonesia. Coordinates 5°35'15"S 133°47'48"E. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 5.1 Detected by 63 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.072 . |
| Depth: | 10 km (6 mi) A very 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 . Tual in Maluku, Indonesia is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 116 kilometer (72 mi) east of Tual.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 116 km (72 mi) W from epicenter |
Tual Maluku, Indonesia. |
2 Aftershocks detected
After this earthquake struck, 2 smaller aftershocks occurred. Just 2 hrs after this main shock, an earthquake measuring MAG-4.4 was detected 4 km (2.5 mi) west of this earthquake.
Before this earthquake struck, 1 smaller foreshock occurred. Nearby this earthquake a foreshock struck 3 days earlier. It measured a magnitude of 4.7
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
| Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreshock | M 4.7 |
3 days earlier Feb 14, 2026 18:48 (Jayapura Time) | 72 km (44 mi) NE from Main Shock. |
| Main Shock This Earthquake |
M 5.1 |
Feb 17, 2026 08:47 (Jayapura Time) | - |
| Aftershock | M 4.4 |
2 hrs later Feb 17, 2026 10:22 (Jayapura Time) | 4 km (2.5 mi) W from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 4.0 |
8 hrs later Feb 17, 2026 17:02 (Jayapura Time) | 45 km (28 mi) NW 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.
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 September 18th, 2025, when a 6 magnitude earthquake hit 289 km (179 mi) further north-east. An even stronger magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck on July 14th, 2025.
In total, 21 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 6 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 5.1. 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 17/02/26 22:48 (). This article contains currently available information about the earthquake and is automatically composed. We continue to update this article up to a few days after the earthquake occurred.
- US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000s9mt
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20260216_0000367
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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