Indonesia earthquakes

M7.9 earthquake 55 km S of Biak, Indonesia

A magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck 55 km S of Biak, Indonesia on Wed, Sep 12, 1979, 2:17 PM GMT+9 (05:17 UTC), 5 km (3 mi) below the surface.

Biak forecast More in Indonesia

Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

Open the live map with earthquakes

The earthquake

Magnitude: 7.9 (ms), major
Local time: Wed, Sep 12, 1979, 2:17 PM GMT+9
UTC: 1979-09-12 05:17:51 UTC
Depth: 5.0 km (3.1 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 1.679° S, 136.040° E
Region: Indonesia
Strongest shaking: VII, very strong shaking
Tsunami flag: No
Status: Reviewed by a seismologist

Shaking

The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.

Strongest estimated: VII, very strong shaking
Peak ground acceleration: 33.9% of gravity
Peak ground velocity: 4.0 cm/s
Map: Automatic

USGS ShakeMap: estimated shaking intensity around the epicenter — Estimated shaking intensity. Map: USGS ShakeMap.

Did you feel it?

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Depth from: OPERATOR_ASSIGNED
Stations used: 175

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.5 and up: 29 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.

After

Earthquakes today Indonesia earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp00012wp (also filed as gcmtd091279a, gcmt19790912051751, atlas19790912051756, iscgem658645). Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 6:13 AM UTC.