In the early afternoon of Friday October 30th, 2026, a significant Magnitude 5.1 earthquake hit in the Solomon Sea 177 kilometer from Lae, Papua New Guinea.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the Solomon Sea, right off the coast of Papua New Guinea (5 mi offshore), 177 kilometer north-east of Lae in Morobe. The center of this earthquake had an intermediate depth of 116 km.
| Date and Time: | Oct 30, 2026 13:04 (Port Moresby Time) - Oct 30, 2026 03:04 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 177 km NE of Lae, Morobe, Papua New Guinea. Coordinates 5°48'49"S 148°18'54"E. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 5.1 Detected by 26 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.112 . |
| Depth: | 116 km (72 mi) An intermediate 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 Papua New Guinea . The closest significant population center near the earthquake is Lae in Morobe, Papua New Guinea. Lae is located 177 kilometer (110 mi) north-east of the epicenter.
A complete list of nearby places is included below.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 177 km (110 mi) SW from epicenter |
Lae Morobe, Papua New Guinea. |
| 204 km (127 mi) E from epicenter |
Kimbe West New Britain, Papua New Guinea. |
| 241 km (150 mi) SW from epicenter |
Bulolo Morobe, Papua New Guinea. |
| 287 km (178 mi) W from epicenter |
Madang Madang, Papua New Guinea. |
Risk of aftershocks?
We monitor for foreshocks or aftershocks that have a magnitude of 2.5+ and occur within 100km (62 mi) of the epicenter of this earthquake. So far no such earthquakes have been detected.
The risk of aftershocks decreases rapidly over time. Usually, aftershocks are at least one order of magnitude lower than a main shock.
In only six percent of cases, significant earthquakes are followed by a larger main shock, making the current earthquake a foreshock. While the chance of this happening is not so large, it is adviced to maintain cautiousness in the hours and days following a major 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 25th, 2026, when a 5.2 magnitude earthquake hit 133 km (83 mi) further west. An even stronger magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck on September 10th, 2022.
In total, 150 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 24 days.
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 116 km (72 mi). Earthquakes this deep in the earth are unlikely to trigger a tsunami. |
Sources
Last updated 30/10/26 09:08 (). 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 us7000tu5q
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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