M4.9 Earthquake 18 km SE of Erci?, Turkey — December 5, 2021
2021-12-05 21:46:49 UTC (2021-12-05) · approx. 12:46 AM UTC+3 local
Felt by 4 people across nearby locations.
On December 5, 2021 at 21:46 UTC, a magnitude 4.9 shallow crustal earthquake struck 18 km SE of Erci?, Turkey, at a depth of 19.4 km and coordinates 38.8916°, 43.4846°.
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 4.9 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 338 metric tons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 1.4 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
The epicenter is located in Turkey, a region characterized by the North Anatolian Fault, a 1,500 km transform boundary driven by the westward extrusion of the Anatolian microplate. The nearest mapped fault system is the North Anatolian Fault. View all earthquakes in Turkey.
Learn more: Magnitude scale · Aftershock sequences
Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking
Aggregated felt-report intensity from 4 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
43.4846°E
Technical Information
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 4.9 earthquake near Erci?, Turkey?
The magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck 18 km SE of Erci?, Turkey on December 5, 2021 at 21:46 UTC had a depth of 19.4 km. For context, this was a light earthquake commonly felt near the epicenter.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at 38.8916°, 43.4846°, which is 18 km SE of Erci?, Turkey. View all earthquakes in Turkey.
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 4.9 earthquakes can continue for several days and gradually diminish over time.
Has Turkey had earthquakes this big before?
The largest recorded earthquake in Turkey was the M7.8 Kahramanmaraş earthquake of February 6, 2023. Today's magnitude 4.9 event is significantly smaller than that historical record.
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us6000g9c1). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2021, December 5, 2021). M4.9 Earthquake 18 km SE of Erci?, Turkey — December 5, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us6000g9c1/