5.0

M5.0 Earthquake 52 km S of Hualien City, TaiwanNovember 6, 2024

2024-11-06 17:19:38 UTC (2024-11-06) · approx. 1:19 AM UTC+8 local

Felt by 4 people across nearby locations.

MagnitudeM5.0(mww)
Time17:19 UTC1:19 AM UTC+8
Depth25.8 kmshallow crustal
Coordinates23.510°, 121.660°
Felt by4DYFI responses
Status✓ Reviewed by USGS

On November 6, 2024 at 17:19 UTC, a magnitude 5.0 shallow crustal earthquake struck 52 km S of Hualien City, Taiwan, at a depth of 25.8 km and coordinates 23.5101°, 121.6598°. This earthquake was detected by 103 seismic stations with excellent location accuracy and was assigned a USGS significance rating of 386, placing it among routine seismic activity.

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 Taiwan, a region characterized by the collision of the Luzon volcanic arc with the Eurasian continental margin, where the Philippine Sea Plate converges at 80 mm per year. View all earthquakes in Taiwan.

Learn more: Magnitude scale · Aftershock sequences

Map showing earthquake epicenter at 23.51°, 121.66°

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.

USGS DYFI community-reported intensity map for the M5.0 earthquake near 52 km S of Hualien City, Taiwan

Source: U.S. Geological Survey Did You Feel It?. View on USGS · submit your own report

Earthquake Details

Magnitude
5.0 mww
Depth
25.8 km
shallow crustal
Location
23.5101°N
121.6598°E
Felt Reports
4
DYFI responses
Community Intensity
3.8
CDI from reports

Technical Information

Event ID
us7000nqa4
Event Type
earthquake
Status
✓ Reviewed
Significance
386
Stations Used
103
Azimuthal Gap
36.0°
Min Station Distance
0.872°
RMS Residual
0.71 sec
Last Updated
2025-01-24 19:51:18 UTC

Common Questions

How strong was the magnitude 5.0 earthquake near Hualien City, Taiwan?

The magnitude 5.0 earthquake that struck 52 km S of Hualien City, Taiwan on November 6, 2024 at 17:19 UTC had a depth of 25.8 km. For context, this was a moderate earthquake that could be widely felt.

Where did the earthquake occur?

The earthquake epicenter was located at 23.5101°, 121.6598°, which is 52 km S of Hualien City, Taiwan. View all earthquakes in Taiwan.

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 Taiwan had earthquakes this big before?

The largest recorded earthquake in Taiwan was the M7.6 Chi-Chi earthquake of September 21, 1999. Today's magnitude 5.0 event is significantly smaller than that historical record.

Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us7000nqa4). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.

Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2024, November 6, 2024). M5.0 Earthquake 52 km S of Hualien City, TaiwanNovember 6, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us7000nqa4/