M5.2 earthquake 21 km E of Cortes, Philippines
A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 21 km E of Cortes, Philippines on Wed, Dec 18, 2002, 7:39 PM GMT+8 (11:39 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 5.2 (Mwc, centroid moment), moderate
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 2002-12-18 11:39:51 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 9.305° N, 126.381° E
- Region
- Philippines
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.2 | Mwc, centroid moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Preferred · Reviewed |
| 5.16 | 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.
Felt (II PIVS) at Butuan.
From the USGS event page for usp000bkxc. 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.
Fault motion and ground failure
How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.
- Faulting
- Oblique reverse
- Nodal plane 1
- Strike 168°, dip 38°, rake 53°
- Nodal plane 2
- Strike 31°, dip 61°, rake 115°
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Depth from
- OPERATOR_ASSIGNED
- Stations used
- 48
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.2 and up: 7 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.414 km E of Cortes, Philippines · 8686 days ago · 33 km deep · 7 km away
- 4.628 km E of Cortes, Philippines · 8686 days ago · 33 km deep · 8 km away
- 4.157 km ENE of La Paz, Philippines · 8684 days ago · 33 km deep · 38 km away
- 4.438 km E of Cortes, Philippines · 8680 days ago · 33 km deep · 18 km away
- 4.737 km ENE of Hinatuan, Philippines · 8674 days ago · 33 km deep · 87 km away
- 4.732 km SE of Union, Philippines · 8671 days ago · 33 km deep · 31 km away
- 4.913 km SE of Union, Philippines · 8666 days ago · 33 km deep · 45 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayPhilippines earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp000bkxc (also filed as gcmtb121802c, gcmt20021218113951, iscgem6260215). Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 11:22 PM UTC.