Back to map
Papua New Guinea · East Sepik

M5.0 Earthquake near Ambunti District, East Sepik (Papua New Guinea)

UTC time: 2026-01-08 03:21:24 UTC Local time: —
Earthquake newsQuakeMap24
Archive record · original publication time was not recorded

Automatically generated from measurement data by QuakeMap24. Values may change after further analysis.

Map

M5.0 Earthquake near Ambunti District, East Sepik (Papua New Guinea) · 2026-01-08 — Map showing the location of the epicenter
M5.0 Earthquake near Ambunti District, East Sepik (Papua New Guinea) · 2026-01-08 — Map showing the location of the epicenter

About this earthquake

On January 8, 2026 at 03:21 UTC, a magnitude M5.0 earthquake occurred near Ambunti District, East Sepik (Papua New Guinea). At around 113 km, the focal depth places this among intermediate-depth events. Events of this size can cause damage near the epicenter.

The event was recorded by GFZ.

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 113 km (Intermediate) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 113 km
Intermediate
113 km
113 km — deeper than the regional average (80.5 km)
Regional average: 80.5 km
Why depth matters

Intermediate-depth quakes are felt across a wider area but usually cause less surface damage.

Depth classes per USGS

Nearby population centers

Distances are straight-line distances from the epicenter. Population data: GeoNames.

PlaceDistanceDirectionPopulation
Wewak169.0 kmE18'230
Jayapura242.7 kmNW410'852

GeoNames · CC BY 4.0

Volcanoes nearby

  • Kadovar
    Distance: 269 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 365 m ·Last eruption: 2023 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Blup Blup
    Distance: 273 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 402 m ·Papua New Guinea
  • Bam
    Distance: 294 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 685 m ·Last eruption: 1960 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Manam
    Distance: 312 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 1'807 m ·Last eruption: 2026 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Karkar
    Distance: 421 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 1'839 m ·Last eruption: 1979 ·Papua New Guinea

Subsequent earthquakes nearby

Events recorded after this earthquake within 150 km. They are not automatically classified as aftershocks.

First 6 hours1
First 24 hours1
First 72 hours1
Strongest subsequent eventM5.0
M5.02026-01-08 03:21:26 UTC13.4 kmAmbunti District M3.62026-01-20 13:06:39 UTC99.7 kmRawei M4.02026-01-22 09:57:40 UTC135.8 kmKoroba - Kopiago District M3.82026-01-28 06:55:59 UTC75.2 kmAmanab District M4.42026-01-29 17:09:10 UTC142.9 kmAitape District M3.42026-01-30 04:37:51 UTC129.6 kmVanimo District M3.72026-02-02 16:18:06 UTC92.0 kmAmanab District

Papua New Guinea

Context for this earthquake

05 Oct 2025 – 05 Oct 2026 · M ≥ 3.0 · 307 Catalogue entries

Sufficiently reliable matching data are not currently available for a direct comparison. The area profile shows the available records and their limitations.

Open seismic profile

Historical context nearby

Comparison with recorded earthquakes before this event within 150 km.

Magnitude rank#3
Earlier events M≥434
Earlier events M≥56
Compared since2025-01-18

The QuakeMap24 comparison dataset begins on 2024-03-23. Earlier earthquakes may not be included.

Strongest earlier events

M5.62025-07-06 08:21:41 UTC31.8 kmNew Guinea, Papua New Guinea M5.32025-07-06 08:21:50 UTC33.1 kmNEW GUINEA, PAPUA NEW GUINEA M5.02025-09-24 14:53:16 UTC24.9 km42 km W of Ambunti, Papua New Guinea M5.02025-09-24 14:53:16 UTC18.9 kmNew Guinea, Papua New Guinea M5.02025-09-24 14:53:16 UTC21.9 kmNEW GUINEA, PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Historic earthquake map · Papua New Guinea

Open history map
Explore recent and long-term earthquake activity in this country. Use filters to narrow down by magnitude, depth, and date range.

Country statistics · Papua New Guinea

Country overview
View earthquake KPIs, strongest and latest events, and averages for this country.

Share