Large Earthquakes Strike South Pacific

Large Earthquakes Measuring Up to 8.2 Mw Strike Vanuatu, Santa Cruz Islands

FEWW had forecast up to 3 additional large quakes in the PRF

Large earthquake measuring up to 8.2 Mw struck Vanuatu region, south of Lata, Santa Cruz Islands, on Wednesday, October 7, 2009 at 22:03 UTC  immediately followed by another shock measuring up to 8.1 Mw, and at least seven aftershocks, with the largest two measuring up to 7.6 Mw and 6.3 Mw respectively.

• FEWW Moderators believe many more massive aftershocks could occur in the region.
  

• Megaquakes should also be expected in this and other regions.
  

10-degree Map Centered at 15°S,165°E

Earthquake Location Map. Source: USGS/EHP. Enhanced by FEWW

Earthquake Details

• Magnitude:  8.2 as estimated by FEWW  [downgraded by USGS/EHP to M7.8]
• Date-Time:
  • Wednesday, October 07, 2009 at 22:03:15 UTC
  • Thursday, October 08, 2009 at 09:03:15 AM at epicenter
• Location: 13.052°S, 166.187°E
• Depth:  35 km (21.7 miles)
• Region: VANUATU
• Distances:
  • 260 km (160 miles) S of Lata, Santa Cruz Islands, Solomon Isl.
  • 295 km (180 miles) NNW of Luganville, Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu
  • 785 km (490 miles) ESE of HONIARA, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands
  • 2100 km (1310 miles) NE of BRISBANE, Queensland, Australia
• Location Uncertainty: horizontal +/- 7.6 km (4.7 miles); depth fixed by location program
• Parameters NST=169, Nph=169, Dmin=>999 km, Rmss=1.32 sec, Gp= 50°, M-type=teleseismic moment magnitude (Mw), Version=6
• Source: USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)
• Event ID: us2009mlcf

Tsunami Warning

NOAA/NWS/West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center said “a tsunami IS NOT expected along the California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, or Alaska coast. NO tsunami warning, watch or advisory is in effect for these areas.”

NWS PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER EWA BEACH HI had issued a tsunami watch which was later canceled with the following evaluation:

BASED ON ALL AVAILABLE DATA THERE IS NO DESTRUCTIVE TSUNAMI THREAT TO THE STATE OF HAWAII. THEREFORE THE TSUNAMI WATCH FOR HAWAII IS CANCELED.

HOWEVER, SOME COASTAL AREAS IN HAWAII COULD EXPERIENCE SMALL NON-DESTRUCTIVE SEA LEVEL CHANGES AND STRONG OR UNUSUAL CURRENTS LASTING UP TO SEVERAL HOURS. THE ESTIMATED TIME SUCH EFFECTS MIGHT BEGIN IS 0650 PM HST WED 07 OCT 2009

THIS WILL BE THE FINAL MESSAGE ISSUED FOR THIS EVENT UNLESS ADDITIONAL DATA ARE RECEIVED.

FEWW Forecast the seismic events

• Up to 3 More Large EQs Could Strike the Pacific Ring of Fire in 2009

• Deadly Earthquake Strikes Java, Indonesia
• Latest Earthquakes Magnitude 5.5 +