M5.3 earthquake 217 km W of Tual, Indonesia
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck 217 km W of Tual, Indonesia on Wed, Jan 21, 1987, 10:51 AM GMT+9 (01:51 UTC), 55 km (34 mi) below the surface.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 5.3 (Mw, moment), moderate
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 1987-01-21 01:51:17 UTC
- Depth
- 54.6 km (33.9 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 5.602° S, 130.788° E
- Region
- Indonesia
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Magnitude estimates
Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.
| Mag. | Scale | Computed by | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.3 | Mw, moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Preferred · Reviewed |
| 5.25 | Mw, moment | ISC-GEM global catalog | Final · ±0.1 |
| 5.2 | Mwc, centroid moment | Global CMT project | Preliminary |
What happened
The USGS’s account of the effects of this earthquake.
CENTROID, MOMENT TENSOR (HRV) Data Used: GDSN L.P.B.: 12S, 26C Centroid Location: Origin Time 01:51:22.4 0.5 Lat 5.53S 0.04 Lon 131.08E 0.06 Dep 87.8 3.8 Half-duration 1.6 Moment Tensor; Scale 10**16 Nm Mrr=7.65 0.56 Mtt=-7.56 0.81 Mff=-0.09 1.20 Mrt=5.32 0.49 Mrf=-0.59 0.48 Mtf=0.95 0.62 Principal Axes: (T) Val=9.34 Plg=73 Azm=6 (N) Val=0.03 Plg=0 Azm=97 (P) Val=-9.36 Plg=17 Azm=187 Best Double Couple:Mo=9.4*10**16 NP1:Strike=278 Dip=28 Slip=91 NP2:Strike=97 Dip=62 Slip=90
From the USGS event page for usp00031t7. U.S. Geological Survey text and figures are in the public domain.
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.3 and up: 2 in the 60 days after this one and 3 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.1286 km W of Tual, Indonesia · 14499 days ago · 141 km deep · 83 km away
- 4.2251 km SSE of Amahai, Indonesia · 14484 days ago · 235 km deep · 95 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayIndonesia earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp00031t7 (also filed as gcmtb012187a, gcmt19870121015115, iscgem477005). Read Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 4:58 PM UTC.