M5.0 Earthquake 36 km SW of Sarpol-e Z?ah?b, Iran — August 9, 2020
2020-08-09 09:16:19 UTC (2020-08-09) · approx. 12:16 PM UTC+3 local
Felt by 2 people across nearby locations.
On August 9, 2020 at 09:16 UTC, a magnitude 5.0 shallow crustal earthquake struck 36 km SW of Sarpol-e Z?ah?b, Iran, at a depth of 10.0 km and coordinates 34.2257°, 45.5918°.
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 5.0 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 477 metric tons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 1.7 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
The epicenter is located in Iran, a region characterized by the Zagros fold-and-thrust belt, where the Arabian Plate collides with Eurasia at 20-25 mm per year. The nearest mapped fault system is the Zagros Fault. View all earthquakes in Iran.
Learn more: Magnitude scale · Aftershock sequences
Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking
Aggregated felt-report intensity from 2 citizen responses to the USGS Did You Feel It? system. Each colored zone represents the average MMI from reports in that area.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey Did You Feel It?. View on USGS · submit your own report
Earthquake Details
45.5918°E
Technical Information
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 5.0 earthquake near Sarpol-e Z?ah?b, Iran?
The magnitude 5.0 earthquake that struck 36 km SW of Sarpol-e Z?ah?b, Iran on August 9, 2020 at 09:16 UTC had a depth of 10.0 km. For context, this was a moderate earthquake that could be widely felt.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at 34.2257°, 45.5918°, which is 36 km SW of Sarpol-e Z?ah?b, Iran. View all earthquakes in Iran.
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 5.0 earthquakes can continue for days to weeks and gradually diminish over time.
Has Iran had earthquakes this big before?
The largest recorded earthquake in Iran was the M7.8 Tabas earthquake of September 16, 1978. Today's magnitude 5.0 event is significantly smaller than that historical record.
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Location
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us6000bbdp). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2020, August 9, 2020). M5.0 Earthquake 36 km SW of Sarpol-e Z?ah?b, Iran — August 9, 2020. Retrieved October 21, 2020 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us6000bbdp/