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Indonesia · North Maluku

M5.3 Earthquake near North Maluku (Indonesia)

UTC time: 2026-07-20 09:40:41 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. How our reports are produced ↗

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M5.3 Earthquake near North Maluku (Indonesia) · 2026-07-20 — Map showing the location of the epicenter
M5.3 Earthquake near North Maluku (Indonesia) · 2026-07-20 — Map showing the location of the epicenter

About this earthquake

On July 20, 2026 at 09:40 UTC, a magnitude M5.3 earthquake occurred near North Maluku (Indonesia). The hypocenter lay relatively close to the surface at around 10 km, increasing how strongly it was felt. Earthquakes of this magnitude can damage poorly built structures.

The event was recorded by GFZ. Indonesia: over the past 24 hours, QuakeMap24 logged 49 earthquakes, the strongest at M4.6.

Details

ID
0ac09cc78ab31b7e7e1a34930822fd20c0b23f74
Magnitude
M5.3
Depth
10.0 km
UTC time
2026-07-20 09:40:41 UTC
Local time
—
Country
Indonesia
State
North Maluku
City
North Maluku
Source
gfz
Coordinates
2.10000, 127.19000
Temperature
28.0°C

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 10 km (Shallow) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 10 km
Shallow
10 km
10 km — shallower than the regional average (43.8 km)
Regional average: 43.8 km
Why depth matters

Shallow quakes release energy near the surface — shaking is felt more strongly and damage potential is higher.

Depth classes per USGS

Estimated impact

1 Felt reports · max reported intensity 2.5

Tectonic context

Located on the Birds Head Plate.
Near the boundary Sunda ↔ Birds Head · about 26 km away

Nearby population centers

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

PlaceDistanceDirectionPopulation
Tobelo100.0 kmSE34'150
Ternate147.2 kmS210'836
General Santos499.2 kmNW722'059

GeoNames · CC BY 4.0

Volcanoes nearby

  • Tobaru
    Distance: 75 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 1'035 m ·Indonesia
  • Tarakan
    Distance: 77 km ·Pyroclastic cone(s) ·Elevation: 317 m ·Indonesia
  • Ibu Activity reported
    Distance: 83 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 1'357 m ·Last eruption: 2026 ·Indonesia
  • Dukono Activity reported
    Distance: 89 km ·Complex ·Elevation: 1'273 m ·Last eruption: 2026 ·Indonesia
  • Gamkonora
    Distance: 89 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 1'635 m ·Last eruption: 2007 ·Indonesia
  • Todoko-Ranu
    Distance: 100 km ·Caldera(s) ·Elevation: 979 m ·Indonesia

Subsequent earthquakes nearby

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

First 6 hours1
First 24 hours3
First 72 hours13
Strongest subsequent eventM5.5
M5.12026-07-20 09:40:43 UTC56.0 kmNorth Maluku M2.92026-07-20 22:10:04 UTC149.5 kmNorth Maluku M2.72026-07-21 07:50:37 UTC109.9 kmNorth Maluku M3.62026-07-21 10:23:35 UTC57.9 kmNorth Maluku M3.52026-07-21 12:36:14 UTC121.4 kmNorth Maluku M2.92026-07-21 21:09:42 UTC33.6 kmNorth Maluku M3.52026-07-22 01:35:30 UTC132.7 kmNorth Maluku M2.92026-07-22 11:39:15 UTC125.2 kmNorth Maluku M3.12026-07-22 13:15:49 UTC33.0 kmNorth Maluku M3.82026-07-22 18:36:01 UTC115.3 kmNorth Maluku M3.22026-07-22 19:34:52 UTC21.2 kmNorth Maluku M3.42026-07-23 05:24:02 UTC93.8 kmNorth Maluku

North Maluku

Context for this earthquake

07 Sep 2025 – 07 Sep 2026 · M ≥ 3.0 · 305 Catalogue entries

Of 304 other entries for this area and period, 8 have a higher stored magnitude. Different magnitude types and reports not yet merged limit the comparison.

Open seismic profile

Historical context nearby

Comparison with recorded earthquakes before this event within 150 km.

Magnitude rank#49
Earlier events M≥4494
Earlier events M≥5137
Compared since2025-01-02

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

Strongest earlier events

M7.82026-04-01 22:48:15 UTC128.5 kmMaluku Utara M7.52026-04-01 22:48:14 UTC147.6 kmMaluku Utara M7.42026-04-01 22:48:14 UTC144.2 kmMOLUCCA SEA M7.42026-04-01 22:48:13 UTC137.6 kmNorthern Molucca Sea M7.32026-04-01 22:48:15 UTC142.0 kmIndonesia [Sea]

Historic earthquake map · Indonesia

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 · Indonesia

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

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