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Papua New Guinea · Autonomous Region of Bougainville

M5.1 Earthquake near Buka District, Autonomous Region of Bougainville (Papua New Guinea)

UTC time: 2026-11-02 05:19:34 UTC Local time: —
Earthquake newsQuakeMap24
First published: Content updated:

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

Magnitude
M5.1
Depth
10.0 km
Source
BMKG

Autonomous Region of Bougainville · Buka District

Country overview

Map

M5.1 Earthquake near Buka District, Autonomous Region of Bougainville (Papua New Guinea) · 2026-11-02 — Map showing the location of the epicenter
M5.1 Earthquake near Buka District, Autonomous Region of Bougainville (Papua New Guinea) · 2026-11-02 — Map showing the location of the epicenter

About this earthquake

A magnitude M5.1 earthquake was recorded near Buka District, Autonomous Region of Bougainville (Papua New Guinea) on November 2, 2026 at 05:19 UTC. The hypocenter lay relatively close to the surface at around 10 km, increasing how strongly it was felt. Events of this size can cause damage near the epicenter.

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

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 (80.3 km)
Regional average: 80.3 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

Tectonic context

Located on the Pacific Plate.
Near the boundary Pacific ↔ North Bismarck · about 13 km away

Nearby population centers

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

PlaceDistanceDirectionPopulation
Arawa130.7 kmSE40'266
Port Moresby999.9 kmSW283'733

GeoNames · CC BY 4.0

Volcanoes nearby

  • Balbi
    Distance: 86 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 2'715 m ·Papua New Guinea
  • Billy Mitchell
    Distance: 105 km ·Caldera ·Elevation: 1'544 m ·Last eruption: 1580 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Bagana
    Distance: 110 km ·Lava cone ·Elevation: 1'855 m ·Last eruption: 2026 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Takuan Group
    Distance: 154 km ·Compound ·Elevation: 2'210 m ·Papua New Guinea
  • Loloru
    Distance: 163 km ·Compound ·Elevation: 1'887 m ·Last eruption: -1050 ·Papua New Guinea
  • Rabaul
    Distance: 337 km ·Caldera ·Elevation: 688 m ·Last eruption: 2014 ·Papua New Guinea

Radius · 100 km

Nearby infrastructure

Up to 3 nearest sites per category

Airports

  • Buka AirportPapua New Guinea · BUA · AYBK
    56.2 kmStraight-line distance

Source: OurAirports · Dataset date: 2026-11-13

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

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#18
Earlier events M≥446
Earlier events M≥520
Compared since2025-01-12

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

Strongest earlier events

M6.12025-09-16 16:59:52 UTC146.4 kmPapua New Guinea [Sea] M5.92026-09-05 14:12:01 UTC110.5 kmAutonomous Region of Bougainville M5.82026-07-28 20:27:59 UTC114.7 kmEvent of magnitude 5.8, near Port Moresby (Monde) M5.72025-09-16 16:59:44 UTC135.8 kmNew Ireland Region, Papua New Guinea M5.52026-05-06 09:42:55 UTC35.3 kmSolomon Islands

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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