MODERATE EARTHQUAKE
South Sandwich Islands region
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck South Sandwich Islands region on 30 Aug 2026, 03:55 UTC. The hypocentre was 142 km below the surface — intermediate by seismological convention. No felt reports have been received so far. 3 other earthquakes above our reporting threshold have been recorded within 250 km in the past 30 days.
- Depth
- 142 km
- Latitude
- 56.48°S
- Time
- 03:55 UTC
- Magnitude
- M5.0
intermediate
27.08°W longitude
30 Aug 2026
mb
EPICENTRE
MAGNITUDE 5.0
Can damage poorly constructed buildings; well-built structures usually escape with little harm.
The scale is logarithmic: this released about 32 times the energy of a magnitude 4.0, roughly the energy of 477 tonnes of TNT.
142 KM DEEP
At this depth the energy spreads before it reaches the surface. Shaking is usually weaker than a shallow earthquake of the same size, but it can be felt across a wider area.
NEARBY IN THE PAST 30 DAYS
3 earthquakes above our reporting threshold within 250 km of this one, the largest a magnitude 5.1.
OTHER RECENT EARTHQUAKES
02 Nov 2026, 05:19 UTC · 87.9 km deep
02 Nov 2026, 04:45 UTC · 10 km deep
02 Nov 2026, 04:28 UTC · 580.9 km deep
02 Nov 2026, 01:54 UTC · 510.1 km deep