M5.0 earthquake 75 km W of Tobelo, Indonesia
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 75 km W of Tobelo, Indonesia on Sat, Jan 6, 1979, 6:22 AM GMT+9 (21:22 UTC), 139 km (86 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.3 141 km NNW of Ternate, Indonesia. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 5.0 (mb, body-wave), moderate
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 1979-01-05 21:22:40 UTC
- Depth
- 139.0 km (86.4 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 1.608° N, 127.343° E
- Region
- Indonesia
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Stations used
- 20
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.0 and up: 1 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
Before
Earthquakes todayIndonesia earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000ya5. Read Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 7:18 PM UTC.