M5.0 Earthquake in the Babuyan Islands region, Philippines — January 12, 2021
2021-01-12 13:38:13 UTC (2021-01-12) · approx. 9:38 PM UTC+8 local
Felt by 2 people across nearby locations.
On January 12, 2021 at 13:38 UTC, a magnitude 5.0 shallow crustal earthquake struck in the Babuyan Islands region, Philippines, at a depth of 10.0 km and coordinates 19.0221°, 120.3133°.
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 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 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
120.3133°E
Technical Information
Nearby Earthquakes (Last 7 Days)
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 5.0 earthquake in the Babuyan Islands region, Philippines?
The magnitude 5.0 earthquake that struck in the Babuyan Islands region, Philippines on January 12, 2021 at 13:38 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 19.0221°, 120.3133°, which is in the Babuyan Islands region, Philippines. View all earthquakes in Philippines.
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 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 5.0 event is significantly smaller than that historical record.
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us6000d7r3). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2021, January 12, 2021). M5.0 Earthquake in the Babuyan Islands region, Philippines — January 12, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us6000d7r3/