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Indonesia

M5.6 Earthquake near 129 km E of Bitung, Indonesia (Indonesia)

UTC time: 2025-12-21 12:21:47 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

M5.6 Earthquake near 129 km E of Bitung, Indonesia (Indonesia) · 2025-12-21 — Map showing the location of the epicenter
M5.6 Earthquake near 129 km E of Bitung, Indonesia (Indonesia) · 2025-12-21 — Map showing the location of the epicenter

About this earthquake

On December 21, 2025 at 12:21 UTC, a magnitude M5.6 earthquake occurred near 129 km E of Bitung, Indonesia (Indonesia). The hypocenter lay relatively close to the surface at around 55 km, increasing how strongly it was felt. Earthquakes of this magnitude can damage poorly built structures.

The event was recorded by USGS. Indonesia: 27 earthquakes were recorded in the past 24 hours, the strongest reaching M5.9.

Details

ID
8ddaecfc3bac1d1c98fb09260e419047ecad3929
Magnitude
M5.6
Depth
54.9 km
UTC time
2025-12-21 12:21:47 UTC
Local time
—
Country
Indonesia
City
Maluku Utara
Source
usgs
Coordinates
1.46560, 126.28820
Temperature
28.8°C

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 54.9 km (Shallow) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 54.9 km
Shallow
54.9 km
54.9 km — deeper than the regional average (43.4 km)
Regional average: 43.4 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
Bitung129.0 kmW225'134
General Santos531.4 kmN722'059

GeoNames · CC BY 4.0

Volcanoes nearby

  • Tangkoko-Duasudara
    Distance: 123 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 1'334 m ·Last eruption: 1880 ·Indonesia
  • Hiri
    Distance: 131 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 687 m ·Indonesia
  • Todoko-Ranu
    Distance: 132 km ·Caldera(s) ·Elevation: 979 m ·Indonesia
  • Jailolo
    Distance: 135 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 993 m ·Indonesia
  • Gamalama
    Distance: 137 km ·Stratovolcano(es) ·Elevation: 1'714 m ·Last eruption: 2018 ·Indonesia
  • Gamkonora
    Distance: 138 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 1'635 m ·Last eruption: 2007 ·Indonesia

Subsequent earthquakes nearby

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

First 6 hours2
First 24 hours5
First 72 hours8
Strongest subsequent eventM5.7
M5.22025-12-21 12:21:48 UTC30.6 kmNorthern Molucca Sea M3.02025-12-21 12:38:42 UTC9.2 kmMOLUCCA SEA M3.22025-12-22 03:51:24 UTC100.5 kmHALMAHERA, INDONESIA M3.12025-12-22 04:36:14 UTC117.0 kmHALMAHERA, INDONESIA M3.42025-12-22 10:05:15 UTC4.7 kmMOLUCCA SEA M4.12025-12-22 18:48:16 UTC49.9 kmMOLUCCA SEA M2.72025-12-22 20:15:16 UTC110.3 kmHALMAHERA, INDONESIA M3.02025-12-23 05:35:00 UTC86.5 kmMOLUCCA SEA M3.42025-12-25 08:50:51 UTC124.3 kmMOLUCCA SEA M2.62025-12-25 20:48:37 UTC34.9 kmMOLUCCA SEA M3.12025-12-26 09:30:57 UTC107.2 kmMOLUCCA SEA M2.72025-12-26 10:23:28 UTC67.8 kmMOLUCCA SEA

Maluku Utara

Context for this earthquake

03 Oct 2025 – 03 Oct 2026 · M ≥ 3.0 · 782 Catalogue entries

Of 781 other entries for this area and period, 6 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#10
Earlier events M≥4192
Earlier events M≥553
Compared since2025-01-02

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

Strongest earlier events

M6.22025-04-02 21:03:37 UTC89.4 km145 km WNW of Tobelo, Indonesia M6.12025-07-25 21:30:00 UTC95.8 kmNorthern Molucca Sea M6.02025-07-25 21:29:55 UTC97.5 km126 km WNW of Tobelo, Indonesia M6.02025-02-05 03:12:28 UTC95.4 kmNorth Maluku M5.92025-04-02 21:03:42 UTC77.9 kmNorth Maluku

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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