M6.2 Earthquake near Banda Sea — May 24, 2023
2023-05-24 15:49:34 UTC (2023-05-24) · approx. 12:49 AM UTC+9 local
Felt by 27 people across nearby locations. Maximum shaking intensity MMI 4.3 (moderate).
On May 24, 2023 at 15:49 UTC, a magnitude 6.2 intermediate depth earthquake struck near Banda Sea, at a depth of 158.0 km and coordinates -6.9484°, 129.5293°. The earthquake was reported felt by 27 peopleacross nearby locations, with a maximum shaking intensity of Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) 4.3 (moderate). The USGS PAGER system issued a green alert level for this event, indicating no significant casualties or damage expected. This earthquake was detected by 289 seismic stations with excellent location accuracy and was assigned a USGS significance rating of 602, making it a moderate-impact event. The nearest populated place is Tiakur (population 0).
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 6.2 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 30 kilotons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 11 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
Nearest Populated Places
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
Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking
Aggregated felt-report intensity from 27 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
Population exposure (USGS PAGER)
Estimated population that experienced each level of shaking. Based on the USGS PAGER rapid impact assessment, which combines ShakeMap output with global population grids.
| Shaking intensity (MMI) | Description | Population exposed |
|---|---|---|
| MMI 4 | light | 139,649 |
Earthquake Details
129.5293°E
Technical Information
Nearby Earthquakes (Last 7 Days)
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 6.2 earthquake near Banda Sea?
The magnitude 6.2 earthquake that struck near Banda Sea on May 24, 2023 at 15:49 UTC had a depth of 158.0 km. It was felt by 27 people with maximum shaking intensity of MMI 4.3 (moderate). For context, this was a strong earthquake capable of causing significant damage.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at -6.9484°, 129.5293°, which is near Banda Sea. The nearest populated place is Tiakur (population 0).
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 6.2 earthquakes can continue for weeks to months and gradually diminish over time.
Actions
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us7000k3h5). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2023, May 24, 2023). M6.2 Earthquake near Banda Sea — May 24, 2023. Retrieved July 29, 2023 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us7000k3h5/