January 25, 1926 Earthquake: Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands
A magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands on January 25, 1926 at 00:36:25 UTC, 15 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
- January 25, 1926
- Time
- 00:36:25 UTC
- Place
- Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands
- Magnitude
- 7.5 (Mw)
- Magnitude scales
- Mw 7.5 · Ms 7.4
- Focal depth
- 15 km (9 mi)
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 10.061° S, 159.215° E
- Country
- Solomon Islands
- Region
- Central and South Pacific
- USGS record
- The USGS’s page for this earthquake
Mw: moment magnitude, based on the slip on the fault and the area that slipped. Ms: surface-wave magnitude. NCEI’s headline magnitude is the best of these for the earthquake.
The toll
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 million)
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
On the 25th January, the Roman Catholic Mission Church at Visale, on the Island of Guadacanal, was destroyed by an earthquake, lasting forty and fifty seconds. The shock was felt through the central islands of the Group and was accompanied in some localities by a tidal wave. (reference #12443).
1926-01-25 00:36:25.12 UTC, 10.0610 S 159.2150 E, 15 depth, Mw 7.48 (reference #10476)
1926-01-25 00:36:29.34 UTC, 09.994 S 159.027 E, 35 depth, Mw 7.2 (reference #9910)
Sources NCEI cites
The publications NCEI lists for this record. The numbers match the “reference #” notes in its account above.
- #9910 Engdahl, E.R., R. van der Hilst, R. Buland (2012). Centennial Earthquake Catalog. Retrieved August 11, 2011 from link
- #10476 International Seismological Centre (2013). Final Scientific Report of the ISC-GEM Instrumental Earthquake Catalogue, ISC-GEM Global Instrumental earthquake Catalogue (1900-2021). Versions 1-12 downloaded beginning 18 March 2013. DOI: 10.31905/D808B825
- #12443 British Solomon Islands Protectorate (1927). British Solomon Islands Protectorate Annual General Report (AR) for 1925-26, No. 1331.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- April 20, 1977, Solomon Islands
- April 21, 1977, Solomon Islands
- April 30, 1939, Solomon Islands
- August 10, 1988, San Cristobal, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands
- February 9, 1991, Solomon Islands
- November 8, 1950, Solomon Sea, Solomon Islands
- November 22, 2022, Honiara, Solomon Islands
- September 16, 1926, Solomon Islands
- July 25, 2012, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands
- September 27, 1985, Honiara, Guadacanal, Solomon Islands
- July 10, 2015, Solomon Islands
- April 20, 1977, Solomon Islands
- October 14, 1991, Solomon Islands
- February 7, 1984, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands
- August 1, 1961, Solomon Islands
More
Significant earthquakes of 1926The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1926Recent earthquakes near hereThis 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 10416. The written accounts and the magnitude estimates are from the USGS earthquake catalog, event iscgem909720, matched to this record by time, place and magnitude.