October 31, 1912 Earthquake: Caroline Islands, Micronesia

Name: October 31, 1912 Earthquake: Caroline Islands, Micronesia
Start: 1912-10-31
Location: Caroline Islands, Micronesia

October 31, 1912 · M6.9

A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck Caroline Islands, Micronesia on October 31, 1912 at 17:24 UTC, 33 km below the surface. It caused a tsunami.

Map

Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.

The earthquake

Date: October 31, 1912
Time: 17:24 UTC
Place: Caroline Islands, Micronesia
Magnitude: 6.9 (Ms)
Focal depth: 33 km (21 mi)
Intensity: III, weak shaking, on the Modified Mercalli scale
Tsunami: Yes: the tsunami it caused
Epicenter: 7.000° N, 138.000° E
Country: Micronesia
Region: Central and South Pacific
USGS record: The USGS’s page for this earthquake

The toll

The record gives no deaths, injuries or damage for this earthquake.

What the record says

NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.

Reference #414:

1912, November 1, about 2:00. An earthquake (7 N, 138 E, magnitude 7) with an intensity of 3 degrees (Rossi-Forel) lasting 5 seconds, was felt on Yap Island. It was reported that a few moments after the shock, an unusual noise of sea surf was heard, although the weather was completely still (Maso 1912 a).

Gutenberg, Richter (1954): 31.X; 17h24.1m; 7o N., 138o E.; M=7.

Reference #130:

1912, October 31, 17:24.1 UTC, 7 N, 138 E, magnitude 7.

Reference #88:

1912, October 31, 17:22 UTC, 11.2 N, 128.8 E, shallow depth, magnitude 7.4 MS.

Reference #9910:

1912, October 31, 17:24:6 UTC, 7 N, 138 E, 6.9 Ms AN2, 6.9 mB ABE1, 7 UK G&R, 6.9 Ms BJI.

Sources NCEI cites

The publications NCEI lists for this record. The numbers match the “reference #” notes in its account above.

#88 Duda, Seweryn J. (1965). Secular seismic energy release in the circum-Pacific belt. Tectonophysics, vol. 2, no. 5, p. 409-452. DOI:10.1016/0040-1951(65)90035-1
#414 Soloviev, S.L., and Ch.N. Go (1974). A catalogue of tsunamis on the western shore of the Pacific Ocean [dates include 173-1968. Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Nauka Publishing House, Moscow, 439 p. [Canadian Translation of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences no. 5077, 1984, translation available from Canada Institute for Scientific and Technical Information, National Research Council, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1A OS2, 447 p.]
#236 Lander, James F., and Patricia A. Lockridge (1989). United States Tsunamis (Including United States Possessions) 1690-1988, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Geophysical Data Center, Boulder, Colorado, USA, Publication 41-2, 265 p.
#130 Gutenberg, B. and C.F. Richter (1965). Seismicity of the earth and associated phenomena. Princeton University Press, 1954 (second edition); Hafner Publishing Company, New York and London (facsimile edition), 310 p.
#9910 Engdahl, E.R., R. van der Hilst, R. Buland (2012). Centennial Earthquake Catalog. Retrieved August 11, 2011 from link

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

Significant earthquakes of 1912 The 1900s Every quake the USGS located in 1912 Recent earthquakes near here This day in weather history

Sources

Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-10-01. NCEI earthquake 6258. The written accounts and the magnitude estimates are from the USGS earthquake catalog, event iscgem16958214, matched to this record by time, place and magnitude.