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5.0MAG

MODERATE EARTHQUAKE

South Sandwich Islands region

USGS

A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck South Sandwich Islands region on 19 Sept 2026, 09:59 UTC. The hypocentre was 77.6 km below the surface — intermediate by seismological convention. No felt reports have been received so far. 10 other earthquakes above our reporting threshold have been recorded within 250 km in the past 30 days.

Depth
77.6 km

intermediate

Latitude
55.63°S

28.11°W longitude

Time
09:59 UTC

19 Sept 2026

Magnitude
M5.0

mb

EPICENTRE

View the official report

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.

77.6 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

10 earthquakes above our reporting threshold within 250 km of this one, the largest a magnitude 6.2.

OTHER RECENT EARTHQUAKES

M5.0 earthquake — South Sandwich Islands region · Quakewire