M4.4 earthquake 14 km E of Cortes, Philippines
A magnitude 4.4 earthquake struck 14 km E of Cortes, Philippines on Sat, Dec 21, 2002, 3:00 AM GMT+8 (19:00 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M4.9 13 km SE of Union, Philippines. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.4 (mb, body-wave), light
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 2002-12-20 19:00:52 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 9.276° N, 126.326° E
- Region
- Philippines
- 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
- Stations used
- 11
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 6 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.628 km E of Cortes, Philippines · 8686 days ago · 33 km deep · 13 km away
- 4.157 km ENE of La Paz, Philippines · 8684 days ago · 33 km deep · 44 km away
- 4.438 km E of Cortes, Philippines · 8680 days ago · 33 km deep · 24 km away
- 4.737 km ENE of Hinatuan, Philippines · 8674 days ago · 33 km deep · 86 km away
- 4.732 km SE of Union, Philippines · 8671 days ago · 33 km deep · 34 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 usp000bm22. Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 11:22 PM UTC.