Strong Mag. 6.0 Earthquake - KERMADEC ISLANDS, NEW ZEALAND, on Friday, Jan 8, 2021, at 12:28 pm (GMT +12) -

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Strong mag. 6.3 earthquake - KERMADEC ISLANDS, NEW ZEALAND, on Friday, 8 January 2021 at 00:28 (GMT) - information

A very strong magnitude 6.0 earthquake occurred in the South Pacific Ocean 73 km (45 mi) from New Zealand around noon of Friday, Jan 8, 2021 at 12.28 pm local time (GMT +12). The quake had a moderate depth of 221 km (137 mi) and was not felt (or at least not reported so).

Strong mag. 6.0 Earthquake - KERMADEC ISLANDS, NEW ZEALAND, on Friday, Jan 8, 2021, at 12:28 pm (GMT +12)

Strong magnitude 6.0 earthquake at 221 km depth

8 Jan 00:39 UTC: First to report: EMSC after 10 minutes.
8 Jan 00:44: Magnitude recalculated from 5.7 to 6.1. Hypocenter depth recalculated from 200.0 to 188.0 km (from 124 to 117 mi). Epicenter location corrected by 24 km (15 mi) towards NW.
... [show all] ...
8 Jan 01:59: Now using data updates from GEONET (NZ)

Earthquake details

Date & time	Jan 8, 2021 00:28:47 UTC
Local time at epicenter	Friday, Jan 8, 2021, at 12:28 pm (GMT +12)
Status	Preliminary (automatic detection)
Magnitude	6.0
Depth	221 km
Epicenter latitude / longitude	29.7468°S / 178.4624°W South Pacific Ocean, New Zealand
Seismic antipode	29.7468°N / 1.5376°E Algeria
Shaking intensity	IV Light shaking near epicenter
Felt	0 reports
Primary data source	GEONET (NZ) (Earthquake Commission and Geological Survey, New Zealand)
Nearest volcano	Raoul Island (57 km / 35 mi)
Weather at epicenter at time of quake
Estimated seismic energy released	6.3 x 10¹³ joules (17.5 gigawatt hours, equivalent to 15080 tons of TNT or 0.9 atomic bombs!) \| about seismic energy

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Data for the same earthquake as reported by different agencies

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Mag	Depth	Time GMT 2021-01-8	Epicenter	Agency
6.0	221 km 137 mi	00:28:47	KERMADEC ISLANDS, NEW ZEALAND	GEONET (NZ) (Earthquake Commission and Geological Survey, New Zealand)
6.2	231 km 144 mi	00:28:51	Kermadec Islands, New Zealand 54 km (34 mi) epicenter difference with GEONET (NZ)	GFZ (German Research Centre for Geosciences)
6.2	166 km 103 mi	00:28:42	Kermadec Islands, New Zealand 27 km (17 mi) epicenter difference with GEONET (NZ)	BMKG (Meteorological, Climatological, and Geophysical Agency of Indonesia)
6.1	151 km 94 mi	00:28:43	Kermadec Islands, New Zealand [Sea: New Zealand] 26 km (16 mi) epicenter difference with GEONET (NZ)	INGV (Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia)
6.2	222 km 138 mi	00:28:47	Kermadec Islands, New Zealand 9.5 km (5.9 mi) epicenter difference with GEONET (NZ)	GeoAu (Geoscience Australia )
6.3	224 km 139 mi	00:28:50	Kermadec Islands, New Zealand 45 km (28 mi) epicenter difference with GEONET (NZ)	USGS (United States Geological Survey)
6.3	182 km 113 mi	00:28:44	New Zealand 38 km (23 mi) epicenter difference with GEONET (NZ)	EMSC (European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre)

Seismograms

Seismic station: Raoul, Kermadec Islands (RAO/IU network) | Distance from quake: 76 km / 47 mi | Show on map | Station Info

Seismic station Raoul, Kermadec Islands: vertical movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismogram (vertical component) around time of quake. Thin dotted red line indicates time of quake. Seismic waves arrive some time later, depending on distance. Bandpass filter applied: 0.1-10.0 Hz. Source: IRIS Buffer of Uniform Data (BUD) webtool

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Seismic station Raoul, Kermadec Islands: horizontal (E-W) movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismic station Raoul, Kermadec Islands: horizontal (N-S) movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismograms around time of quake, showing horizontal E-W and N-S ground movements. Source: IRIS Buffer of Uniform Data (BUD) webtool

Seismic station: Monasavu, Fiji (MSVF/II network) | Distance from quake: 1381 km / 858 mi | Show on map | Station Info

Seismic station Monasavu, Fiji: vertical movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismogram (vertical component) around time of quake. Thin dotted red line indicates time of quake. Seismic waves arrive some time later, depending on distance. Bandpass filter applied: 0.02-5.0 Hz. Source: IRIS Buffer of Uniform Data (BUD) webtool

Seismic station Monasavu, Fiji: horizontal (E-W) movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismic station Monasavu, Fiji: horizontal (N-S) movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismograms around time of quake.
Top: vertical movement, bottom: horizontal (E-W and N-S) movements. Source: IRIS Buffer of Uniform Data (BUD) webtool

Seismic station: Afiamalu, Samoa (AFI/IU network) | Distance from quake: 1890 km / 1174 mi | Show on map | Station Info

Seismic station Afiamalu, Samoa: vertical movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismogram (vertical component) around time of quake. Thin dotted red line indicates time of quake. Seismic waves arrive some time later, depending on distance. Bandpass filter applied: 0.02-2.0 Hz. Source: IRIS Buffer of Uniform Data (BUD) webtool

Seismic station Afiamalu, Samoa: horizontal (E-W) movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismic station Afiamalu, Samoa: horizontal (N-S) movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismograms around time of quake.
Top: vertical movement, bottom: horizontal (E-W and N-S) movements. Source: IRIS Buffer of Uniform Data (BUD) webtool

Seismic station: Honiara, Solomon Islands (HNR/IU network) | Distance from quake: 3183 km / 1978 mi | Show on map | Station Info

Seismic station Honiara, Solomon Islands: vertical movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismogram (vertical component) around time of quake. Thin dotted red line indicates time of quake. Seismic waves arrive some time later, depending on distance. Bandpass filter applied: 0.02-2.0 Hz. Source: IRIS Buffer of Uniform Data (BUD) webtool

Seismic station Honiara, Solomon Islands: horizontal (E-W) movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismic station Honiara, Solomon Islands: horizontal (N-S) movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismograms around time of quake.
Top: vertical movement, bottom: horizontal (E-W and N-S) movements. Source: IRIS Buffer of Uniform Data (BUD) webtool

Seismic station: Charters Towers, Australia (CTAO/IU network) | Distance from quake: 3701 km / 2299 mi | Show on map | Station Info

Seismic station Charters Towers, Australia: vertical movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismogram (vertical component) around time of quake. Thin dotted red line indicates time of quake. Seismic waves arrive some time later, depending on distance. Bandpass filter applied: 0.02-2.0 Hz. Source: IRIS Buffer of Uniform Data (BUD) webtool

Seismic station Charters Towers, Australia: horizontal (E-W) movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismic station Charters Towers, Australia: horizontal (N-S) movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismograms around time of quake.
Top: vertical movement, bottom: horizontal (E-W and N-S) movements. Source: IRIS Buffer of Uniform Data (BUD) webtool

2 aftershocks for this quake

For this earthquake, 2 aftershocks have been detected so far. The strongest was a magnitude 4.8 quake that hit 13 weeks after the mainshock in 14.9 km (9 mi) distance, in New Zealand on Wednesday, Apr 7, 2021 on 12:40 am (- local time GMT +12).

What are aftershocks?

Larger earthquakes (above magnitude 5 or so) such as this one are usually followed by smaller ones known as aftershocks that occur in the same area during the days, weeks, months or even years after the main shock.

[More info]

What about this quake?

Based on its magnitude, the fault that was active during the quake likely ruptured beneath a surface of approx. 100 km² (=39 sqare miles) as a first-order estimate. The length of the rupture zone thus was probably around 17 km (11 mi).

[More info]

Recorded aftershocks, latest first (2 quakes)

Date and Time GMT	Mag Depth	Distance	Region	Details
Apr 7, 2021 12:40 am (GMT +12) 3 years ago 13 weeks after main shock	4.8 10 km	15 km (9.2 mi) NE of main shock	New Zealand	More
Apr 7, 2021 12:40 am (GMT +12) 3 years ago 13 weeks after main shock	4.8 10 km	15 km (9.3 mi) NE of main shock	Kermadec Islands, New Zealand	More
Jan 8, 2021 12:28 pm (GMT +12) 3 years ago	6.0 221 km	0 km - This quake	South Pacific Ocean, 74 km SW of Raoul Island, New Zealand Main Shock (this quake)	More

Map of aftershocks

Previous quakes in the same area of this earthquake

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