Powerful Earthquake Strikes Banda Sea
Posted by feww on October 25, 2009
Powerful Quake Measuring up to 7.3 Magnitude Strikes Banda Sea
A powerful earthquake measuring up to 7.3 Mw struck Banda Sea about 40 km WNW of Serua volcano and 65 km south of Manuk volcano, on Saturday, October 24, 2009 at 14:41 UTC.
The quake occurred at 6.161°S, 130.346°E, some 230 km NNW of Saumlaki, Tanimbar Islands, Indonesia, at a depth of about 140 km. It was followed by a moderate quake measuring up to 5.3 Mw, which struck at 6.749°S, 131.601°E, on Sunday, October 25, 2009 at 00:35:06 UTC.
On February 21, 1938, a large quake measuring M 8.5 struck about 185 km northeast of Saturday’s quake at a depth of 25km.
FEWW Forecast:
Based on an analysis of seismic activity in the region, FEWW Moderators believe a large earthquake measuring up to M 8.6 could strike Banda Sea in the next 3 – 6 months. Additional events measuring 6.0 to 7.6 Mw could also be expected in the region, anytime.
See also Earthquake Forecast: Timor Sea
10-degree Map Centered at 5°S,130°E
Earthquake Location Map. Source: USGS/EHP. Enhanced by FEWW
Tsunami Warning:
This earthquake was located too deep inside the earth to generate a destructive tsunami in the Indian ocean, NOAA PTWC said.
Earthquake Details
- Magnitude: [7.3 Mw – estimated by FEWW]
- Date-Time:
- Saturday, October 24, 2009 at 14:40:44 UTC
- Saturday, October 24, 2009 at 11:40:44 PM at epicenter
- Location: 6.161°S, 130.346°E
- Depth: 138.5 km (86.1 miles)
- Region: BANDA SEA
- Distances:
- 230 km (145 miles) NNW of Saumlaki, Tanimbar Islands, Indonesia
- 365 km (225 miles) SE of Ambon, Moluccas, Indonesia
- 700 km (435 miles) N of DARWIN, Northern Territory, Australia
- 2610 km (1620 miles) E of JAKARTA, Java, Indonesia
- Location Uncertainty: horizontal +/- 6.6 km (4.1 miles); depth +/- 9.2 km (5.7 miles)
- Source:USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)
- Event ID: us2009ndan
Population Exposure:
Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are vulnerable to earthquake shaking, though some resistant structures exist. A magnitude 6.6 earthquake 360 km Northwest of this one struck Indonesia on March 12, 1983 (UTC), with estimated population exposures of 126,000 at intensity VII and 204,000 at intensity VI, with no reported fatalities. On June 17, 1987 (UTC), a magnitude 7.1 earthquake 82 km Northeast of this one struck Indonesia, with estimated population exposures of 1,000 at intensity VI and 82,000 at intensity V, with no reported fatalities. Source: USGS/EHP
Historic Seismicity
Major Tectonic Boundaries: Subduction Zones -purple, Ridges -red and Transform Faults -green
Major Tectonic Boundaries: Subduction Zones -purple, Ridges -red and Transform Faults -green
Related Links:
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- Recent Earthquakes ≥ 6.0 Mw
- Earth undergoing significant geophysical disturbances
- Powerful Earthquake Strikes Celebes Sea, S of Philippines
- Large Earthquakes Strike South Pacific
- Earthquakes: Human Enhanced Disasters – UPDATE 2 Oct 2009
- Another Strong Quake Hits Sumatra
- Disaster Update: Indonesia Quake
- Powerful Earthquake Strikes Southern Sumatra, Indonesia
- Samoa Tsunami Update
- Magnitude 8.3 Quake Strikes Samoa Islands Region
- Magnitude 6.8 EQ Strikes BANDA SEA
Fire Earth 
feww said
Earthquake rattles Darwin and surrounds
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,26257163-2702,00.html
DARWIN residents flooded police with calls of concern after an earthquake shook the Top End last night.
The magnitude-7 earthquake occurred just after midnight local time. It struck in the Banda Sea, about 700km north of Darwin.
The earthquake occurred about 140km below the surface _ too deep to trigger a tsunami.
Northern Territory police received about 100 calls from concerned residents but no reports of structural damage or injuries.
“NT police received about 100 calls from members of public concerned after the earth tremor and that includes people ringing from the Darwin region and as far south as Katherine (300km from the capital,” Superintendent Warren told ABC Radio.
“However there was no structural damage reported and no injuries,”
The Bureau of Meteorology in Darwin said the tremor lasted up to five minutes with an intense period of about one to two minutes.
Residents reported windows rattling and furniture shaking at the height of the tremor.
Other News Links:
Strong quake hits eastern Indonesia, causes panic
(AP) – 1 hour ago
JAKARTA, Indonesia — A powerful earthquake struck deep under the sea in eastern Indonesia, causing panic and sending residents running out of their homes, officials and witnesses said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
The earthquake late Saturday night had a magnitude of 7.0, but at a depth of 86 miles (138 kilometers) was too far below the earth’s surface to cause a tsunami, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.
The quake came as Indonesia is still recovering from a devastating earthquake last month that killed more than 1,000 people on western Sumatra.
The U.S. Geological Survey says the latest quake — the second strong temblor in two days — was located 225 miles (365 kilometers) southeast of Ambon in the Maluku islands in the Banda Sea.
The shaking was strong and people ran to higher ground fearing a tsunami, said Ian Kotualubun, an official with Indonesia’s Meteorology and Geophysics Agency in Saumlaki, the area closest to the epicenter, about 2,700 kilometers (1,700 miles) east of the capital, Jakarta.
Police in Saumlaki said they had received no reports of damage or injuries.
Indonesia sits above a series of fault lines that make the vast island nation one of the most earthquake-prone places in the world. A massive quake off the coast of Indonesia’s Aceh province caused the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed 230,000 people, half of the victims on Sumatra island.
Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Strong earthquake jolts Maluku
The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Sat, 10/24/2009 10:51 PM | National
A strong earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale jolted Saumlaki Island in Maluku on Saturday evening.
The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) located the epicenter in Banda Sea about 209 kilometers northwest of Saumlaki at a depth of 165 kilometers beneath the ocean floor.
The agency issued a tsunami warning immediately after the quake struck at about 9:40 p.m. Jakarta time, but withdrew it about 35 minutes later.
The tectonic quake was also felt as far as Manokwari and Sorong in West Papua.
“We have yet to receive any report from the field, particularly on whether the tsunami struck,” said Hendra Rachman of the BMKG.
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/10/24/strong-earthquake-jolts-maluku.html