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M4.5 earthquake Banda Sea

A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck in the Banda Sea on Sat, Nov 21, 1987, 12:50 PM GMT+9 (03:50 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.1 Banda Sea. This one was a foreshock.

Tual forecast

Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude
4.5 (mb), light
Local time
UTC
1987-11-21 03:50:28 UTC
Depth
33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter
6.821° S, 129.824° E
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.

Depth from
OPERATOR_ASSIGNED

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 10 in the 60 days after this one and 11 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 3.9293 km WSW of Tual, Indonesia · 14184 days ago · 150 km deep · 73 km away
  2. 4.0286 km NE of Lospalos, Timor Leste · 14178 days ago · 277 km deep · 83 km away
  3. 4.1Banda Sea · 14177 days ago · 128 km deep · 20 km away
  4. 4.2289 km ENE of Lospalos, Timor Leste · 14173 days ago · 237 km deep · 76 km away
  5. 5.1Banda Sea · 14171 days ago · 119 km deep · 13 km away
  6. 4.5Banda Sea · 14171 days ago · 168 km deep · 43 km away
  7. 5.1278 km WSW of Tual, Indonesia · 14165 days ago · 134 km deep · 72 km away
  8. 4.9Banda Sea · 14151 days ago · 153 km deep · 63 km away
  9. 5.1Kepulauan Babar, Indonesia · 14146 days ago · 149 km deep · 60 km away
  10. 4.7269 km WSW of Tual, Indonesia · 14132 days ago · 125 km deep · 81 km away

Before

  1. 4.9Kepulauan Babar, Indonesia · 14196 days ago · 127 km deep · 44 km away
  2. 4.6278 km ENE of Lospalos, Timor Leste · 14197 days ago · 169 km deep · 87 km away
  3. 4.7Banda Sea · 14201 days ago · 123 km deep · 34 km away
  4. 4.8Banda Sea · 14201 days ago · 162 km deep · 37 km away
  5. 4.0283 km WSW of Tual, Indonesia · 14206 days ago · 180 km deep · 84 km away
  6. 4.6Banda Sea · 14207 days ago · 144 km deep · 20 km away
  7. 4.2Kepulauan Babar, Indonesia · 14207 days ago · 151 km deep · 53 km away
  8. 4.3Kepulauan Babar, Indonesia · 14208 days ago · 174 km deep · 31 km away
  9. 5.0264 km WSW of Tual, Indonesia · 14211 days ago · 135 km deep · 89 km away
  10. 5.3Kepulauan Babar, Indonesia · 14211 days ago · 94 km deep · 27 km away
  11. 4.9Banda Sea · 14214 days ago · 173 km deep · 34 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0003aap. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 10:05 AM UTC.