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Papua New Guinea

M5.0 Earthquake near New Britain Region, Papua New Guinea (Papua New Guinea)

UTC time: 2025-10-21 03:47:30 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 New Britain Region, Papua New Guinea (Papua New Guinea) · 2025-10-21 — Map showing the location of the epicenter
M5.0 Earthquake near New Britain Region, Papua New Guinea (Papua New Guinea) · 2025-10-21 — Map showing the location of the epicenter

About this earthquake

A magnitude M5.0 earthquake was recorded near New Britain Region, Papua New Guinea (Papua New Guinea) on October 21, 2025 at 03:47 UTC. The hypocenter lay relatively close to the surface at around 66 km, increasing how strongly it was felt. Events of this size can cause damage near the epicenter.

The data is provided by GFZ and cross-checked across seismological networks. Papua New Guinea: 3 earthquakes were recorded in the past 24 hours, the strongest reaching M5.8.

Details

ID
2a31160b9c1f8dcbec64ec07fe1655c2bb001971
Magnitude
M5.0
Depth
66.0 km
UTC time
2025-10-21 03:47:30 UTC
Local time
—
Country
Papua New Guinea
City
East New Britain
Source
gfz
Coordinates
-5.17000, 152.19000
Temperature
29.9°C

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 66 km (Shallow) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 66 km
Shallow
66 km
66 km — close to the regional average (82.3 km)
Regional average: 82.3 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

Nearby population centers

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

PlaceDistanceDirectionPopulation
Kokopo92.3 kmN26'273
Port Moresby733.5 kmSW283'733

GeoNames · CC BY 4.0

Volcanoes nearby

  • Ulawun
    Distance: 96 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 2'334 m ·Last eruption: 2025 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Rabaul
    Distance: 103 km ·Caldera ·Elevation: 688 m ·Last eruption: 2014 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Bamus
    Distance: 106 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 2'248 m ·Last eruption: 1886 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Lolobau
    Distance: 117 km ·Caldera ·Elevation: 878 m ·Last eruption: 1912 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Tavui
    Distance: 118 km ·Caldera ·Elevation: 200 m ·Last eruption: -4946 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Hargy
    Distance: 122 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 1'148 m ·Last eruption: 950 ·Papua New Guinea

Radius · 100 km

Nearby infrastructure

Up to 3 nearest sites per category

Airports

  • Tokua AirportPapua New Guinea · RAB · AYTK
    94.6 kmStraight-line distance

Source: OurAirports · Dataset date: 2026-09-26

This selection shows geographic proximity, not a hazard zone or confirmed impacts. Distances use recorded site coordinates. Sources & data dates

Subsequent earthquakes nearby

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

First 6 hours0
First 24 hours0
First 72 hours0
Strongest subsequent eventM5.3
M5.32025-10-27 14:29:33 UTC131.9 km203 km ESE of Kimbe, Papua New Guinea M5.12025-10-27 14:29:33 UTC119.9 kmNew Britain Region, Papua New Guinea M5.32025-10-27 14:29:33 UTC118.6 kmNEW BRITAIN REGION, P.N.G. M5.02025-10-27 14:29:35 UTC120.7 kmEvent of magnitude 5.0, near of Port Moresby (Monde)

East New Britain

Context for this earthquake

27 Sep 2025 – 27 Sep 2026 · M ≥ 3.0 · 33 Catalogue entries

Of 32 other entries for this area and period, 19 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#38
Earlier events M≥4177
Earlier events M≥555
Compared since2025-01-01

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

Strongest earlier events

M6.92025-04-04 20:04:38 UTC143.7 km181 km ESE of Kimbe, Papua New Guinea M6.52025-04-04 20:04:39 UTC124.4 km194 km ESE of Kimbe, Papua New Guinea M6.22025-04-12 03:47:13 UTC126.4 km M6.12025-04-12 03:47:09 UTC119.4 km105 km ESE of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea M5.92025-08-07 16:33:59 UTC131.3 kmNew Britain Region, 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.

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