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85 series loaded · last import on 2026-10-24

Earthquakes USGS catalogue M ≥ 4.5 since 1900, historical NCEI earthquakes

Earth · earthquakes

A year of strong earthquakes

Each spike is a magnitude 5.5+ earthquake of the last twelve months (USGS ComCat); its height follows the magnitude, its colour the depth. Rings mark the strongest. Earthquakes outline the plate boundaries.

  • < 70 km (shallow)
  • 70–300 km (intermediate)
  • > 300 km (deep)
Latest catalogued earthquake
M 5.7
2026-10-23 08:19 UTC
61 km WNW of Leni, Italy
Strongest in the catalogue
M 9.5
1960-05-22
1960 Great Chilean Earthquake (Valdivia Earthquake)
Earthquakes M ≥ 7
1,620
1900 → 2026
USGS ComCat earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 (FDSN event service) · U.S. Government work, public domain; cite USGS ANSS ComCat · 10/23/26

Positions and magnitudes from the USGS catalogue; heights exaggerated. Base map: local NASA Blue Marble.

Catalogued earthquakes M ≥ 4.5
312,027
1900 → 2026-10-23
 
USGS ComCat earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 (FDSN event service) · U.S. Government work, public domain; cite USGS ANSS ComCat · 10/23/26
Earthquakes M ≥ 7
1,620
including 100 M ≥ 8
 
USGS ComCat earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 (FDSN event service) · U.S. Government work, public domain; cite USGS ANSS ComCat · 10/23/26
Latest catalogued earthquake
M 5.7
2026-10-23 08:19 UTC · 61 km WNW of Leni, Italy
USGS ComCat earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 (FDSN event service) · U.S. Government work, public domain; cite USGS ANSS ComCat · 10/23/26
Strongest in the catalogue
M 9.5
1960-05-22 · 1960 Great Chilean Earthquake (Valdivia Earthquake)
USGS ComCat earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 (FDSN event service) · U.S. Government work, public domain; cite USGS ANSS ComCat · 10/23/26
Earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 in the last 30 days of the catalogue USGS ComCat earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 (FDSN event service) · U.S. Government work, public domain; cite USGS ANSS ComCat · 10/23/26
USGS ComCat epicentres; size proportional to magnitude, colour by depth (hypocentre). Base map: local NASA Blue Marble tiles (OpenStreetMap available in the layer switcher, loaded only if chosen).
Earthquakes M ≥ 7 and M ≥ 6 per year USGS ComCat earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 (FDSN event service) · U.S. Government work, public domain; cite USGS ANSS ComCat · 10/23/26 USGS ComCat earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 (FDSN event service) · U.S. Government work, public domain; cite USGS ANSS ComCat · 10/23/26
Show the data as a table
Number of earthquakes per calendar year in the USGS ComCat catalogue. The current year is provisional. The 1973 point is marked: before that date the global catalogue is not complete at these magnitudes (Centennial and ISC-GEM contributions).
Earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 per year USGS ComCat earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 (FDSN event service) · U.S. Government work, public domain; cite USGS ANSS ComCat · 10/23/26
Show the data as a table
Completeness at M 4.5 depends on the global network; the rise after 1973, and again in the 1990s–2000s, reflects denser station coverage first, not increasing seismicity.
Ten strongest earthquakes in the USGS catalogue (since 1900)
#MDatePlaceDepth
19.5 mw1960-05-221960 Great Chilean Earthquake (Valdivia Earthquake)25 km
29.2 mw1964-03-28The 1964 Prince William Sound, Alaska Earthquake25 km
39.1 mw2004-12-252004 Sumatra - Andaman Islands Earthquake30 km
49.1 mww2011-03-112011 Great Tohoku Earthquake, Japan29 km
59.0 mw1952-11-0489 km ESE of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia22 km
68.8 mw1906-01-311906 Ecuador-Colombia Earthquake20 km
78.8 mww2010-02-272010 Maule, Chile Earthquake23 km
88.8 mww2025-07-292025 Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia Earthquake35 km
98.7 mw1965-02-041965 Western Aleutian Islands (Hawadax/Rat Islands) Earthquake30 km
108.6 mw1946-04-01The 1946 Unimak Island, Alaska Earthquake15 km
Deadliest earthquakes (NCEI significant earthquake database) NCEI/WDS Global Significant Earthquake Database · U.S. Government work, public domain; cite NCEI/WDS · 10/23/26
#YearPlaceMDeaths
11556CHINA: SHAANXI PROVINCE8.0830,000
22010HAITI: PORT-AU-PRINCE tsunami7.0316,000
3115TURKEY: ANTAKYA (ANTIOCH) tsunami7.5260,000
4525TURKEY: ANTAKYA (ANTIOCH), SAMANDAG7.0250,000
51976CHINA: NE: TANGSHAN7.5242,769
61920CHINA: GANSU PROVINCE, SHANXI PROVINCE tsunami8.3235,502
71139AZERBAIJAN: GYZNDZHA—230,000
82004INDONESIA: SUMATRA: ACEH: OFF WEST COAST tsunami9.1227,899
9856IRAN: DAMGHAN, QUMIS7.9200,000
10893ARMENIA: DVIN; IRAN: ARDABIL—150,000
Death tolls from the NCEI/WDS database (direct and indirect totals, including tsunamis); old estimates are highly uncertain.
Filterable USGS catalogue USGS ComCat earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 (FDSN event service) · U.S. Government work, public domain; cite USGS ANSS ComCat · 10/23/26
Export CSV
Date (UTC)MPlaceDepthLat., lon.
2020-01-26 05:316.1 mww240 km WSW of Adak, Alaska17 km51.13, -179.89
2020-01-24 16:556.7 mww13 km N of Do?anyol, Turkey10 km38.43, 39.06
2020-01-23 04:536.2 mww84 km W of Adak, Alaska10 km51.98, -177.86
2020-01-20 05:516.1 mwwSouth Sandwich Islands region93 km-59.23, -26.28
2020-01-19 15:586.1 mww108 km SE of Gorontalo, Indonesia122 km-0.10, 123.80
2020-01-19 12:276.0 mww104 km ENE of Kashgar, China6 km39.84, 77.11
2020-01-18 15:386.0 mww146 km W of Abepura, Indonesia44 km-2.84, 139.34
2020-01-09 07:386.4 mwwChukotskiy Avtonomnyy Okrug, Russia10 km62.36, 171.06
2020-01-07 18:116.0 mww130 km ENE of Kimbe, Papua New Guinea117 km-5.20, 151.27
2020-01-07 07:246.4 mw4 km SSE of Indios, Puerto Rico6 km17.96, -66.81
2020-01-07 05:056.3 mww14 km S of Sinabang, Indonesia17 km2.35, 96.36
2019-12-25 19:206.1 mwwsouthern East Pacific Rise10 km-25.22, -115.84
2019-12-25 02:366.3 mww203 km W of Port McNeill, Canada7 km50.61, -129.96
2019-12-24 18:036.0 mww1 km NE of Lejanías, Colombia11 km3.54, -74.02
2019-12-24 15:436.0 mww16 km WNW of El Hoyo, Argentina572 km-26.96, -63.39
2019-12-23 19:566.0 mww189 km W of Port McNeill, Canada10 km50.52, -129.76
2019-12-23 18:496.0 mww201 km W of Port McNeill, Canada10 km50.61, -129.94
2019-12-20 10:396.1 mww49 km SW of Jurm, Afghanistan212 km36.54, 70.46
2019-12-15 05:116.8 mww7 km S of Magsaysay, Philippines18 km6.70, 125.17
2019-12-14 03:576.0 mww56 km SSE of Sola, Vanuatu8 km-14.36, 167.71
2019-12-06 12:046.0 mww159 km WNW of Hihifo, Tonga10 km-15.26, -175.10
2019-12-04 19:106.0 mww60 km NNE of Isangel, Vanuatu266 km-19.07, 169.57
2019-12-03 07:466.0 mww29 km W of Arica, Chile38 km-18.50, -70.58
2019-12-02 04:016.0 mww127 km SW of Adak, Alaska28 km51.19, -178.10
2019-11-27 06:236.0 mww45 km WNW of Kíssamos, Greece69 km35.72, 23.23
2019-11-26 01:546.4 mww15 km WSW of Mamurras, Albania22 km41.51, 19.53
2019-11-23 23:546.3 mww95 km SE of Adak, Alaska20 km51.38, -175.51
2019-11-23 11:116.2 mww241 km SE of Tobi Village, Palau5 km1.64, 132.81
2019-11-20 22:506.2 mww43 km WNW of Sainyabuli, Laos10 km19.45, 101.36
2019-11-20 07:266.3 mww264 km NW of Ozernovskiy, Russia496 km53.13, 153.68
2019-11-20 03:276.3 mww125 km SW of Puerto Madero, Mexico15 km13.89, -93.21
2019-11-14 20:126.0 mww135 km NW of Ternate, Indonesia23 km1.54, 126.42
2019-11-14 15:177.1 mww141 km NW of Ternate, Indonesia33 km1.62, 126.42
2019-11-11 22:036.2 mww147 km W of Neiafu, Tonga10 km-18.86, -175.37
2019-11-08 09:446.5 mwwFiji region577 km-21.94, -179.51
2019-11-05 23:396.0 mwwVanuatu10 km-13.72, 167.81
2019-11-05 22:176.0 mww23 km ENE of Sola, Vanuatu19 km-13.80, 167.75
2019-11-05 19:526.3 mwweast of the South Sandwich Islands10 km-57.92, -9.32
2019-11-04 21:436.6 mww136 km W of Neiafu, Tonga10 km-18.57, -175.27
2019-11-04 20:536.1 mww29 km SW of Illapel, Chile53 km-31.84, -71.38
2019-11-02 17:086.1 mwwSouth Sandwich Islands region8 km-55.74, -26.24
2019-10-31 00:116.5 mww2 km ENE of Bulatukan, Philippines10 km6.91, 125.18
2019-10-29 00:046.6 mww10 km NE of Columbio, Philippines15 km6.76, 125.01
2019-10-23 14:086.3 mwwnorth of Ascension Island10 km-1.10, -13.84
2019-10-21 00:526.4 mww61 km NNE of Isangel, Vanuatu231 km-19.02, 169.49
2019-10-16 09:376.4 mww7 km ENE of Columbio, Philippines16 km6.71, 125.01
2019-10-01 01:566.0 mwwsouthern East Pacific Rise10 km-55.93, -122.56
2019-09-29 13:576.7 mww70 km WSW of Constitución, Chile11 km-35.48, -73.16
2019-09-29 00:026.2 mww86 km SSE of Pondaguitan, Philippines73 km5.68, 126.55
2019-09-27 10:056.1 mwwKermadec Islands, New Zealand34 km-30.17, -177.86
Method and sources

The USGS ComCat (ANSS) catalogue is read through the FDSN web service, one request per calendar year since 1900 for magnitudes ≥ 4.5; the last two years are re-read on each update because solutions are revised. Magnitudes are those published (mb, Ms, Mw, ml…) and are not converted; depth is the hypocentre depth in km.

Yearly counts are computed on the server from imported events of type “earthquake” (explosions and other types are kept but excluded from counts). Historical earthquakes and their tolls come from the NCEI/WDS significant earthquake database, dated to the year when the day is unknown.

Reading these data
The global catalogue is homogeneous neither in time nor in magnitude: completeness at M 4.5 is only reached after 1973 and still improves afterwards. Magnitudes of different types are not comparable; the great historical earthquakes (e.g. Valdivia 1960, M 9.5) are re-evaluations. No link with solar activity or tides is established; see the Correspondences pages.
SOURCES OF THIS PAGE
USGS ComCat earthquakes M ≥ 4.5 (FDSN event service)
U.S. Geological Survey, Earthquake Hazards Program (2017). Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS) Comprehensive Catalog of Earthquake Events and Products. Accessed through the FDSN event web service. · doi:10.5066/F7MS3QZH · source page ↗
Licence : U.S. Government work, public domain; cite USGS ANSS ComCat · retrieved on Oct 23, 2026 · SHA-256 c1e3c08c2c8f…
NCEI/WDS Global Significant Earthquake Database
National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service (NGDC/WDS): NCEI/WDS Global Significant Earthquake Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. · doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K · source page ↗
Licence : U.S. Government work, public domain; cite NCEI/WDS · retrieved on Oct 23, 2026 · SHA-256 f99e14bcd8f1…
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