Strong mag. 5.2 earthquake - South China Sea, 65 km north of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines, on Tuesday, May 17, 2022 at 4:42 pm (GMT +8) -
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Strong magnitude 5.2 earthquake at 5 km depth
17 May 08:51 UTC: First to report: GFZ after 9 minutes.
17 May 09:02: Magnitude recalculated from 4.8 to 5.0. Epicenter location corrected by 9.4 km (5.8 mi) towards NE.
17 May 09:03: Now using data updates from USGS
17 May 15:54: Magnitude recalculated from 5.1 to 5.2. Hypocenter depth recalculated from 39.6 to 4.7 km (from 25 to 2.9 mi). Epicenter location corrected by 9.6 km (6 mi) towards WNW.
17 May 09:02: Magnitude recalculated from 4.8 to 5.0. Epicenter location corrected by 9.4 km (5.8 mi) towards NE.
17 May 09:03: Now using data updates from USGS
17 May 15:54: Magnitude recalculated from 5.1 to 5.2. Hypocenter depth recalculated from 39.6 to 4.7 km (from 25 to 2.9 mi). Epicenter location corrected by 9.6 km (6 mi) towards WNW.
Update Tue, 17 May 2022, 08:57
Moderate magnitude 4.8 earthquake 100 km northwest of Aparri, Philippines4.8 quake 17 May 4:42 pm (GMT +8)
An earthquake of magnitude 4.8 occurred only 15 minutes ago 100 km northwest of Aparri, Philippines, the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) reported.
The quake hit at a shallow depth of 10 km beneath the epicenter near Aparri, Cagayan, Cagayan Valley, Philippines, in the afternoon on Tuesday, May 17th, 2022, at 4:42 pm local time. The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.
A second report was later issued by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), which listed it as a magnitude 5.4 earthquake. Other agencies reporting the same quake include the citizen-seismograph network of RaspberryShake at magnitude 4.8, and the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) at magnitude 5.0.
Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should not have caused any significant damage, but was probably felt by many people as light vibration in the area of the epicenter.
Weak shaking might have been felt in Claveria (pop. 10,600) located 53 km from the epicenter, Namuac (pop. 3,000) 53 km away, Pagudpud (pop. 4,900) 65 km away, Cabaritan East (pop. 9,300) 85 km away, and Ballesteros (pop. 5,600) 87 km away.
Other towns or cities near the epicenter where the quake might have been felt as very weak shaking include Pasuquin (pop. 5,800) located 96 km from the epicenter, Aparri (pop. 33,200) 100 km away, and Laoag (pop. 102,100) 111 km away.
VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant news about the quake become available. If you're in the area, please send us your experience through our reporting mechanism, either online or via our mobile app. This will help us provide more first-hand updates to anyone around the globe who wants to know more about this quake.
The quake hit at a shallow depth of 10 km beneath the epicenter near Aparri, Cagayan, Cagayan Valley, Philippines, in the afternoon on Tuesday, May 17th, 2022, at 4:42 pm local time. The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.
A second report was later issued by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), which listed it as a magnitude 5.4 earthquake. Other agencies reporting the same quake include the citizen-seismograph network of RaspberryShake at magnitude 4.8, and the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) at magnitude 5.0.
Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should not have caused any significant damage, but was probably felt by many people as light vibration in the area of the epicenter.
Weak shaking might have been felt in Claveria (pop. 10,600) located 53 km from the epicenter, Namuac (pop. 3,000) 53 km away, Pagudpud (pop. 4,900) 65 km away, Cabaritan East (pop. 9,300) 85 km away, and Ballesteros (pop. 5,600) 87 km away.
Other towns or cities near the epicenter where the quake might have been felt as very weak shaking include Pasuquin (pop. 5,800) located 96 km from the epicenter, Aparri (pop. 33,200) 100 km away, and Laoag (pop. 102,100) 111 km away.
VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant news about the quake become available. If you're in the area, please send us your experience through our reporting mechanism, either online or via our mobile app. This will help us provide more first-hand updates to anyone around the globe who wants to know more about this quake.
Earthquake data
Earthquake details
Date & time | May 17, 2022 08:42:20 UTC - |
Local time at epicenter | Tuesday, May 17, 2022 at 4:42 pm (GMT +8) |
Status | Confirmed |
Magnitude | 5.2 |
Depth | 4.7 km |
Epicenter latitude / longitude | 19.1963°N / 121.0817°E ![]() |
Antipode | 19.196°S / 58.918°W |
Shaking intensity | Strong shaking near epicenter |
Felt | 0 reports |
Primary data source | USGS (United States Geological Survey) |
Nearest volcano | Camiguin de Babuyanes (91 km / 57 mi) |
Nearby towns and cities | 65 km (41 mi) N of Claveria (Cagayan) (pop: 10,600) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 77 km (48 mi) NNE of Pagudpud (pop: 4,950) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 97 km (60 mi) NNW of Cabaritan East (Cagayan) (pop: 9,350) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 110 km (69 mi) NNW of Aparri (Cagayan) (pop: 33,200) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 122 km (76 mi) NNE of Laoag (pop: 102,100) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 138 km (86 mi) NNE of Batac City (pop: 53,500) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 188 km (117 mi) NNW of Tuguegarao City (pop: 115,100) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 511 km (317 mi) N of Manila (pop: 1,600,000) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 356 km (221 mi) N of Luzon Island (pop: 46,228,000) | Show on map | Quakes nearby |
Weather at epicenter at time of quake | Moderate Rain ![]() |
Estimated seismic energy released | 4 x 1012 joules (1.11 gigawatt hours, equivalent to 951 tons of TNT) | about seismic energy |
Data for the same earthquake reported by different agencies
Info: The more agencies report about the same quake and post similar data, the more confidence you can have in the data. It takes normally up to a few hours until earthquake parameters are calculated with near-optimum precision.
Mag. | Depth | Location | Source |
5.2 | 4.7 km | 65 Km N of Claveria, Philippines | USGS |
5.1 | 40 km | BABUYAN ISL REGION, PHILIPPINES | EMSC |
5.2 | 4.7 km | Philippines: Philippine Islands Region | RaspberryShake |
5.1 | 14 km | Philippines: 071 Km N 19° W of Dalupiri Island (Calayan) (Cagayan) | PHIVOLCS |
5.0 | 10 km | 59 Km N of Namuac, Philippines | GFZ |
5.2 | 10 km | Philippines: Philippine Islands Region | GeoAu |
User reports for this quake
User reports estimate the perceived ground shaking intensity according to the MMI (Modified Mercalli Intensity) scale.
Aftershocks
[More info]
Recorded aftershocks, latest first (24 quakes)
Date and time![]() | Mag Depth | Location | Details |
Jun 29, 2022 11:24 4 days ago | 3.4 1 km | South China Sea, 66 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 29, 2022 03:53 4 days ago | 2.2 9 km | 91 km NW of Aparri, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 28, 2022 23:34 4 days ago | 2.8 19 km | South China Sea, 98 km NW of Aparri, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 27, 2022 00:09 6 days ago | 2.4 17 km | South China Sea, 53 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 24, 2022 17:44 8 days ago | 2.1 23 km | South China Sea, 72 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 24, 2022 16:26 8 days ago | 3.0 5 km | South China Sea, 90 km NW of Aparri, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 22, 2022 07:11 11 days ago | 3.2 26 km | South China Sea, 75 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 20, 2022 21:46 12 days ago | 2.6 31 km | South China Sea, 52 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 20, 2022 12:42 13 days ago | 3.2 2 km | South China Sea, 83 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 16, 2022 17:29 2 weeks ago | 2.3 22 km | South China Sea, 58 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 12, 2022 06:05 3 weeks ago | 3.7 15 km | South China Sea, 70 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 11, 2022 16:23 3 weeks ago | 3.1 27 km | South China Sea, 55 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 9, 2022 21:37 3 weeks ago | 2.1 9 km | 90 km NW of Aparri, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 7, 2022 14:59 4 weeks ago | 3.0 1 km | South China Sea, 54 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Jun 2, 2022 06:29 4 weeks ago | 2.4 28 km | South China Sea, 69 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
May 29, 2022 23:06 5 weeks ago | 2.5 9 km | 90 km NW of Aparri, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
May 27, 2022 14:43 5 weeks ago | 3.3 16 km | South China Sea, 90 km NW of Aparri, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
May 25, 2022 05:17 6 weeks ago | 2.2 2 km | South China Sea, 90 km NW of Aparri, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
May 20, 2022 06:04 6 weeks ago | 4.4 33 km | South China Sea, 64 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
May 18, 2022 13:30 7 weeks ago | 2.9 2 km | 87 km NW of Aparri, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
May 17, 2022 13:50 7 weeks ago | 3.7 1 km | South China Sea, 67 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
May 17, 2022 12:21 7 weeks ago | 3.1 6 km | South China Sea, 64 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
May 17, 2022 11:25 7 weeks ago | 2.8 9 km | 93 km NW of Aparri, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
May 17, 2022 08:51 7 weeks ago | 3.7 1 km | South China Sea, 48 km N of Claveria, Cagayan, Philippines | More |
Earlier earthquakes in the same area
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