Shallow M6.8 earthquake hits Banda Sea, Indonesia

Image credit: TW/SAM, Google
A strong and shallow earthquake registered by the BMKG as M6.8 hit Banda Sea, Indonesia at 13:02 UTC on November 8, 2023, at a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). This is most likely the aftershock of M7.2 quake that hit the same region at 04:52 UTC today.
The epicenter was located 319 km (198 miles) W of Tual (population 88 999), and 353 km (219.4 miles) SSE of Amahai (population 47 653), Maluku, Indonesia.
There is no tsunami potential from this earthquake, BMKG said.
139 000 people are estimated to have felt light shaking, according to the USGS PAGER.
The USGS issued a Green alert for shaking-related fatalities and economic losses. There is a low likelihood of casualties and damage.
Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are vulnerable to earthquake shaking, though resistant structures exist. The predominant vulnerable building types are unreinforced brick with concrete floor and precast concrete frame with wall construction.

Regional seismicity

I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.

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