M4.8 Earthquake 27 km NE of Guiuan, Philippines — October 18, 2020
2020-10-18 05:46:54 UTC (2020-10-18) · approx. 1:46 PM UTC+8 local
Felt by 1 person across nearby locations.
On October 18, 2020 at 05:46 UTC, a magnitude 4.8 shallow crustal earthquake struck 27 km NE of Guiuan, Philippines, at a depth of 35.0 km and coordinates 11.1819°, 125.9284°.
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 4.8 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 239 metric tons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 1.2 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
The epicenter is located in Philippines, a region characterized by the Manila Trench and Philippine Trench subduction systems, where the Philippine Sea Plate overrides the Eurasian Plate. The nearest mapped fault system is the Philippine Fault. View all earthquakes in Philippines.
Learn more: Magnitude scale · Aftershock sequences
Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking
Aggregated felt-report intensity from 1 citizen response 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
125.9284°E
Technical Information
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 4.8 earthquake near Guiuan, Philippines?
The magnitude 4.8 earthquake that struck 27 km NE of Guiuan, Philippines on October 18, 2020 at 05:46 UTC had a depth of 35.0 km. For context, this was a light earthquake commonly felt near the epicenter.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at 11.1819°, 125.9284°, which is 27 km NE of Guiuan, Philippines. View all earthquakes in Philippines.
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 4.8 earthquakes can continue for several days and gradually diminish over time.
Has Philippines had earthquakes this big before?
The largest recorded earthquake in Philippines was the M8.0 Mindanao earthquake of August 17, 1976. Today's magnitude 4.8 event is significantly smaller than that historical record.
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us6000c94l). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2020, October 18, 2020). M4.8 Earthquake 27 km NE of Guiuan, Philippines — October 18, 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2020 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us6000c94l/