November 26, 1841 Tsunami: Moluccas Islands, Indonesia
A tsunami caused by an earthquake began at Moluccas Islands, Indonesia on November 26, 1841. The water rose as high as 3 meters. Its effects were recorded at 1 place.
Where the waves reached
The source (white) and every runup with a place, colored by the water height recorded there. A ring is a runup NCEI marks doubtful.
- Under 1 m
- 1 to 3 m
- 3 to 10 m
- 10 to 30 m
- 30 m and more
- Height not recorded
The tsunami
- Date
- November 26, 1841
- Source
- Moluccas Islands, Indonesia
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- The earthquake
- Maximum water height
- 3 m (9.8 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- 1.5
- Tsunami magnitude (Iida)
- 1.5
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Probable tsunami
- Source location
- 5.000° S, 130.000° E
The toll
The record gives no deaths, injuries or damage for this tsunami.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
Reference #414:
1841, November 26, at 6:00 [local time] (according to other sources, at 6:30). At Bandaneira, there was a weak horizontal shock. It lasted more than 1 minute (according to other sources, from 2 to 3 minutes). Fifteen minutes
later, a tidal wave surged with great force onto the south coast of Neira Island. It reached a height of 2 1/2-3 m (8-9 feet), or, according to other sources, 2 m (6 feet) above the level of the maximal flood tides, so that the water came up to the gates of Fort Nassau. The flood and ebb continued for more than 45 minutes. This phenomenon occurred during an ebb.
Reference #132:
1841, November 26. Moluccas, Banda Neira. A wave of great force, 8 to 9 feet high, struck the south coast.
Reference #40:
1841, November 26. Indonesia. Moluccas, Bandanaira. A wave of great force, 2.4 to 2.7 meters (8 to 9 feet) high, struck the south coast, (Heck 1947).
Every runup
Nearest the source first. Heights are above sea level at the time; a tide gauge reads half the wave’s full height.
| Where | Country | Km from source | Water height, m | Inland, m | Measured by | First wave, UTC | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bandanaira (Banda-Neira), Banda Is. | Indonesia | 53 | 3 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1841The 1800sTsunamis of IndonesiaThe earthquakeThis day in weather historyAlerts in force
Sources
Tsunami events and runups from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI tsunami event 724.