MODERATE EARTHQUAKE
68 km NNE of Kainantu, Papua New Guinea
A magnitude 5.4 earthquake struck 68 km NNE of Kainantu, Papua New Guinea on 20 Sept 2026, 12:45 UTC. The hypocentre was 116 km below the surface — intermediate by seismological convention. No felt reports have been received so far. The figures have been revised 4 times since the first report. 7 other earthquakes above our reporting threshold have been recorded within 250 km in the past 30 days.
- Depth
- 116 km
- Latitude
- 5.77°S
- Time
- 12:45 UTC
- Magnitude
- M5.4
intermediate
146.20°E longitude
20 Sept 2026
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EPICENTRE
MAGNITUDE 5.4
Can damage poorly constructed buildings; well-built structures usually escape with little harm.
The scale is logarithmic: this released about 130 times the energy of a magnitude 4.0, roughly the energy of 2 thousand tonnes of TNT.
116 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
7 earthquakes above our reporting threshold within 250 km of this one, the largest a magnitude 6.4.
OTHER RECENT EARTHQUAKES
20 Sept 2026, 13:35 UTC · 7 km deep
20 Sept 2026, 12:24 UTC · 33.9 km deep
20 Sept 2026, 11:43 UTC · 162.5 km deep
20 Sept 2026, 09:17 UTC · 104.3 km deep