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M5.7 Earthquake near New Britain Region, Papua New Guinea

UTC time: 2025-12-21 05:25:23 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.

Magnitude
M5.7
Depth
31.0 km
Source
USP

New Britain Region, Papua New Guinea

Map

M5.7 Earthquake near New Britain Region, Papua New Guinea · 2025-12-21 — Map showing the location of the epicenter
M5.7 Earthquake near New Britain Region, Papua New Guinea · 2025-12-21 — Map showing the location of the epicenter

About this earthquake

On December 21, 2025 at 05:25 UTC, a magnitude M5.7 earthquake occurred near New Britain Region, Papua New Guinea. With a focal depth of about 31 km, this was a shallow earthquake, whose shaking is usually felt more strongly at the surface. Earthquakes of this magnitude can damage poorly built structures.

The data is provided by USP and cross-checked across seismological networks.

Details

ID
81d405509b41422244c2d3b6219246b481948e72
Magnitude
M5.7
Depth
31.0 km
UTC time
2025-12-21 05:25:23 UTC
Local time
—
Country
—
Source
usp
Coordinates
-5.80630, 151.72495

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 31 km (Shallow) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 31 km
Shallow
31 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
Kokopo173.5 kmN26'273
Port Moresby648.6 kmSW283'733

GeoNames · CC BY 4.0

Volcanoes nearby

  • Bamus
    Distance: 87 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 2'248 m ·Last eruption: 1886 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Hargy
    Distance: 87 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 1'148 m ·Last eruption: 950 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Sulu Range
    Distance: 93 km ·Stratovolcano(es) ·Elevation: 610 m ·Papua New Guinea
  • Ulawun
    Distance: 95 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 2'334 m ·Last eruption: 2025 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Lolobau
    Distance: 117 km ·Caldera ·Elevation: 878 m ·Last eruption: 1912 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Witori
    Distance: 136 km ·Caldera ·Elevation: 724 m ·Last eruption: 2012 ·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 hours7
First 72 hours8
Strongest subsequent eventM5.5
M5.22025-12-21 05:25:25 UTC88.2 kmEvent of magnitude 5.2, near of Port Moresby (Monde) M4.92025-12-21 14:23:34 UTC27.2 km150 km SSW of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea M4.92025-12-21 14:23:35 UTC34.7 kmNew Britain Region, Papua New Guinea M5.32025-12-21 23:07:27 UTC17.2 km157 km SSW of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea M5.52025-12-21 23:07:27 UTC42.5 kmNEW BRITAIN REGION, P.N.G. M5.42025-12-21 23:07:28 UTC27.5 kmNew Britain Region, Papua New Guinea M5.22025-12-21 23:07:28 UTC73.9 kmEvent of magnitude 5.2, near of Port Moresby (Monde) M4.92025-12-22 14:00:23 UTC44.9 kmNew Britain Region, Papua New Guinea M5.12025-12-29 11:40:02 UTC95.6 km115 km S of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea M5.12025-12-29 11:40:02 UTC117.4 kmEvent of magnitude 5.1, near of Port Moresby (Monde) M5.02025-12-29 11:40:09 UTC84.5 kmNew Britain Region, Papua New Guinea M5.12025-12-29 11:40:09 UTC84.1 kmNEW BRITAIN REGION, P.N.G.

No unambiguous area assignment

Context for this earthquake

This event has no unambiguous country assignment in the analysed catalogue. It is therefore not assigned to a regional profile.

Earthquake overview

Historical context nearby

Comparison with recorded earthquakes before this event within 150 km.

Magnitude rank#4
Earlier events M≥4199
Earlier events M≥562
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 UTC58.7 km181 km ESE of Kimbe, Papua New Guinea M6.52025-04-04 20:04:39 UTC44.5 km194 km ESE of Kimbe, Papua New Guinea M5.82025-06-23 03:17:13 UTC122.3 kmNew Britain Region, Papua New Guinea M5.52025-04-12 03:47:24 UTC145.4 kmNew Ireland M5.42025-04-30 11:51:43 UTC93.5 kmNew Britain Region, Papua New Guinea

Stats (last 24h)

Global (24h)
381
Country (24h)
—
—
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