Significant M5.9 Earthquake struck on Friday Morning in the Maluku Sea 144km from Manado (Indonesia).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on May 22nd, 2026.

A significant MAG-5.9 earthquake struck in the Maluku Sea 144 kilometer from Manado, Indonesia in the morning of Friday May 22nd, 2026. Around 2.9 million people have been exposed to shaking.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the Maluku Sea, 104 kilometers (64 mi) off the coast of Indonesia, 144 kilometer east of Manado in North Sulawesi. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 35 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	May 22, 2026 09:05 (Makassar Time) - May 22, 2026 01:05 Universal Time.
Location:	144 km east of Manado, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Coordinates 1°2'36"N 126°4'1"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.9 Detected by 17 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.075 .
Depth:	35 km (22 mi) A quite shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	V Moderate 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 90% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 fatalities.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level GREEN (low). They expect an 90% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact.

Roughly 2.9 million people exposed to shaking

The USGS has published a report estimating the number of people exposed to this earthquake. Acoording to their analysis, roughly 2.9 million have been exposed to shaking at an MMI level of II or higher.

Light shaking and likely no damage may have been experienced by an estimated 126,700 people. At IV, it is the highest MMI level this earthquake has caused. The majority of people (roughly 2.8 million) live in an area exposed to level III, where weak shaking and probably no damage is expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Indonesia .

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Indonesia . Tondano in North Sulawesi, Indonesia is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 132 kilometer (82 mi) east of Tondano. Tondano experienced an earthquake intensity (MMI Scale) of roughly IV. That level implies light shaking and likely no damage.

Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. Manado is located 144 km to the west and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage). Ternate is located 149 km to the east and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage). Gorontalo is located 339 km to the west (intensity unknown, possibly low).

An overview of nearby towns and cities is available in the overview below. If places don't have intensity data available, it likely means the experienced impact in those places was fairly small.

Overview of nearby places

Earthquake Intensity Map

The graph below overlays a map of the region around the epicenter with earthquake intensity data provided by the US Geographic Survey. The highest intensity level detected for this earthquake is IV.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

30 Aftershocks detected

After this earthquake struck, 30 smaller aftershocks occurred. A 3.8 magnitude earthquake hit 1 day later 83 km (52 mi) northwest of this earthquake.

This main shock was prefaced by 29 smaller foreshocks. A 3.9 magnitude earthquake hit 3 days earlier nearby.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

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.

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 April 2nd, 2026, when a 5.9 magnitude earthquake hit 47 km (29 mi) further north-east. An even stronger magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck on April 1st, 2026.

In total, 30 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.9 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 4 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

Sources

Last updated 22/05/26 17:38 (). 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.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000szdy
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20260522_0000016
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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