In the evening of Tuesday March 31st, 2026, a significant MAG-5.1 earthquake hit in the Sulawesi Sea 211 kilometer from Gorontalo, Indonesia.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the Sulawesi Sea, 100 kilometers (62 mi) off the coast of Indonesia, 211 kilometer northwest of Gorontalo. The center of this earthquake had a deep depth of 550 km.
| Date and Time: | Mar 31, 2026 19:14 (Makassar Time) - Mar 31, 2026 11:14 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 211 km NW of Gorontalo, Indonesia. Coordinates 2°0'32"N 121°52'9"E. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 5.1 Detected by 52 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.079 . |
| Depth: | 550 km (341 mi) A deep depth. |
| Tsunami Risk: | Tsunami very unlikely Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 at depths deeper than 100km are very unlikely to cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here. |
Nearby towns and cities
This earthquake may have been felt in Indonesia . Gorontalo in Gorontalo, Indonesia is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 211 kilometer (131 mi) northwest of Gorontalo.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 211 km (131 mi) SE from epicenter |
Gorontalo Gorontalo, Indonesia. |
Aftershocks detected
Before this earthquake struck, 1 smaller foreshock occurred. Roughly 3 hrs before this earthquake, a foreshock measuring MAG-2.5 was detected nearby this earthquake.
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
| Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreshock | M 2.5 |
3 hrs earlier Mar 31, 2026 15:52 (Makassar Time) | 96 km (59 mi) S from Main Shock. |
| Main Shock This Earthquake |
M 5.1 |
Mar 31, 2026 19:14 (Makassar Time) | - |
More earthquakes coming?
Aftershocks are usually at least 1 order of magnitude less strong than main shocks. The more time passes, the smaller the chance and likely strength of any potential aftershocks.
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 February 19th, 2026, when a 5.5 magnitude earthquake hit 74 km (46 mi) further south. An even stronger magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck on January 10th, 2017.
In total, 40 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 3 months.
Tsunami very unlikely
For a serious tsunami to occur, earthquakes usually need to have a magnitude of at least 6.5 and occur at a shallow depth of maximum 100km. Neither are the case with this earthquake. 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 | 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. |
Not this earthquake. This earthquake occurred at a depth of 550 km (341 mi). Earthquakes this deep in the earth are unlikely to trigger a tsunami. |
Sources
Last updated 31/03/26 21:08 (). 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 us7000s92w
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20260331_0000202
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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