November 18, 1918 Earthquake: Banda Sea, Indonesia

Name: November 18, 1918 Earthquake: Banda Sea, Indonesia
Start: 1918-11-18
Location: Banda Sea, Indonesia

November 18, 1918 · M8.1

A magnitude 8.1 earthquake struck Banda Sea, Indonesia on November 18, 1918 at 18:41:55 UTC, 190 km below the surface.

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: November 18, 1918
Time: 18:41:55 UTC
Place: Banda Sea, Indonesia
Magnitude: 8.1 (Ms)
Focal depth: 190 km (118 mi)
Tsunami: None recorded
Epicenter: 7.000° S, 129.000° E
Country: Indonesia
Region: Central and South Pacific

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.

November 18, 1918, 18:41:55 UTC, 7 S, 129 E, depth 190 km, magnitude 8.1 MS. (reference #88)

November 18, 1918, 18:41:55 UTC, 7 S, 129 E, depth 190 km, magnitude 7.8 MS. (reference #130)

November 18, 1918, 18:41:55 UTC, 7 S 129 E, depth 190 km, magnitude 8.1 MS. (reference #1006)

Sources NCEI cites

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

#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.
#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
#1006 Richter, Charles F. (1958). Elementary Seismology. W.H. Freeman and Co., San Francisco, California, 768 p.

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

Significant earthquakes of 1918 The 1900s Every quake the USGS located in 1918 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 3128.