M6.8 Earthquake in the Prince Edward Islands region — May 21, 2023
2023-05-21 14:56:48 UTC (2023-05-21) · approx. 5:56 PM UTC+3 local
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On May 21, 2023 at 14:56 UTC, a magnitude 6.8 shallow crustal earthquake struck in the Prince Edward Islands region, at a depth of 28.0 km and coordinates -43.3991°, 39.3035°. The USGS PAGER system issued a green alert level for this event, indicating no significant casualties or damage expected. This earthquake was detected by 82 seismic stations with excellent location accuracy and was assigned a USGS significance rating of 711, making it a moderate-impact event.
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 6.8 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 239 kilotons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 30 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
ShakeMap — predicted shaking intensity
Modeled ground-motion intensity contoured on the Modified Mercalli scale (MMI). Computed by the USGS from the moment-tensor solution and regional ground-motion prediction equations.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey ShakeMap. View interactive ShakeMap on USGS
Earthquake Details
39.3035°E
Technical Information
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 6.8 earthquake in the Prince Edward Islands region?
The magnitude 6.8 earthquake that struck in the Prince Edward Islands region on May 21, 2023 at 14:56 UTC had a depth of 28.0 km. For context, this was a strong earthquake capable of causing significant damage.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at -43.3991°, 39.3035°, which is in the Prince Edward Islands region.
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 6.8 earthquakes can continue for weeks to months and gradually diminish over time.
Actions
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us6000kdmq). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2023, May 21, 2023). M6.8 Earthquake in the Prince Edward Islands region — May 21, 2023. Retrieved July 29, 2023 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us6000kdmq/