Strong magnitude 5.3 earthquake at 211 km depth4 Apr 16:31 UTC: First to report: GFZ after 9 minutes.I didn't feel itI felt this quakeEarthquake detailsDate & timeApr 4, 2026 16:23:20 UTC - Local time at epicenterSaturday, Apr 4, 2026, at 04:23 pm (Universal Time GMT +0)Statusunconfirmed (uncertain whether an earthquake with these data happened)Magnitude5.3Depth211 kmEpicenter latitude / longitude4.77°S / 153.22°EPapua New GuineaSeismic antipode4.77°N / 26.78°WShaking intensityIII Weak shaking near epicenterFelt0 reportsPrimary data sourceGFZ (German Research Centre for Geosciences)Nearest volcanoAmbitle (90 km / 56 mi)Weather at epicenter at time of quakeLight Rain 28°C (82 F), humidity: 74%, wind: 5 m/s (9 kts) from NNWEstimated seismic energy released5.6 x 1012 joules (1.56 gigawatt hours, equivalent to 1344 tons of TNT) | equivalent to ONE quake of magnitude 5.3 | about seismic energy9 minutes agoApr 4, 2026 16:23 GMT / Apr 4, 2026 04:23 pm (Universal Time)Lat / Lng: -4.77 / 153.22: New Ireland Region, Papua New GuineaSource: GFZDetail info | You felt it? - Report it!';storedMarkers.push(['quake-22875306',-4.77000,153.22000,'9 minutes ago: Mag. 5.3, New Ireland Region, Papua New Guinea',html,'quakes-7-24.png',30,30,15,15,126]); function mkRep(id,notFelt){var nFelt=notFelt||false;var src="https://www.volcanoesandearthquakes.com/app/earthquake-report.php?quakeId="+id;if(nFelt==true){src+="¬Felt=true";}window.open(src,"","status=0,toolbar=0,location=0,directories=0,menubar=0,resizable=1,scrollbars=1,height=400,width=350");} function locationHashChanged(e){-1!=e.oldURL.indexOf("#popupMap")&&closePopup()} window.onhashchange = locationHashChanged; function comment(e){var t=e.parentNode,a=(t.dataset.id,document.getElementById("commentForm"));"none"==a.style.display?(t.appendChild(a),a.style.display="block"):a.style.display="none"}function sendComment(e){var t=e.parentNode,a=t.parentNode.dataset.id,n=document.getElementById("commentContent"),p=n.value.trim();if(p){var o="id="+a+"&quakeId="+thisQuakeId;o+="&comment="+decodeURIComponent(p),mkRequest("//reports.volcanodiscovery.com/app/eqReportComment.php","post",o,function(e){e.responseText;alert("Thank you for submitting your comment!"),t.style.display="none",n.value=""})}}function flagReport(e){var t=e.parentNode.dataset.id;if(confirm("Report this as inappropriate?")){var a="id="+t+"&quakeId="+thisQuakeId+"&flagAsInappropriate=1";mkRequest("//reports.volcanodiscovery.com/app/eqReportComment.php","post",a,function(t){var a=t.responseText;alert(a),e.style.display="none"})}}function likeReport(e){var t="id="+e.parentNode.dataset.id+"&quakeId="+thisQuakeId+"&like=1";mkRequest("//reports.volcanodiscovery.com/app/eqReportComment.php","post",t,function(t){t.responseText;e.style.opacity=.5})}]]>[smaller] [bigger]Most recent quakes Top 20 past 24 hrs Quakes in Papua New GuineaNearby placesThe closest larger town where the quake might have been felt is Kokopo, a town with 26,000 inhabitants in Papua New Guinea, in 116 km (72 mi) distance northwest of the epicenter. People likely experienced weak shaking there. In the capital of Papua New Guinea, Port Moresby, 850 km (528 mi) away from the epicenter, the earthquake could not be felt.The following table shows some of the places that might have been affected (or not) by the shaking.DistancePlaceMax. shaking intensity(*)RegionCountry116 km (72 mi)NW of epicenterKokopo(pop: 26,300)III: WeakEast New Britain ProvincePapua New Guinea133 km (83 mi)NW of epicenterRabaul(pop: 8,070)III: WeakEast New Britain ProvincePapua New Guinea304 km (189 mi)SE of epicenterPanguna(pop: 2,920)II: Very weakBougainvillePapua New Guinea306 km (190 mi)SE of epicenterArawa(pop: 40,300)II: Very weakBougainvillePapua New Guinea351 km (218 mi)SE of epicenterBuin(pop: 750)II: Very weakSouth Bougainville, BougainvillePapua New Guinea352 km (219 mi)W of epicenterKimbe(pop: 18,800)II: Very weakWest New Britain ProvincePapua New Guinea364 km (226 mi)NW of epicenterKavieng(pop: 14,500)II: Very weakNew Ireland ProvincePapua New Guinea413 km (256 mi)SE of epicenterTaro(pop: 1,050)II: Very weakBatava, ChoiseulSolomon Islands437 km (271 mi)W of epicenterKandrian(pop: 1,010)II: Very weakWest New Britain ProvincePapua New Guinea546 km (339 mi)SE of epicenterGizo(pop: 7,180)II: Very weakWestern ProvinceSolomon Islands584 km (363 mi)SE of epicenterNoro(pop: 7,200)II: Very weakWestern ProvinceSolomon Islands597 km (371 mi)SE of epicenterMunda(pop: 3,140)II: Very weakWestern ProvinceSolomon Islands629 km (391 mi)W of epicenterFinschhafen(pop: 1,050)II: Very weakMorobe ProvincePapua New Guinea708 km (440 mi)SW of epicenterPopondetta(pop: 28,200)II: Very weakSohe, Northern ProvincePapua New Guinea850 km (528 mi)SW of epicenterPort Moresby(pop: 283,700)I: Not feltNational Capital DistrictPapua New GuineaNotes:(*) Shaking intensity according to the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale (MMI) and estimated using seismic models.User-reports for this quakeThere are no user reports for this quake yet.If you felt it, be the first to report it!Get the Android appCompare Quake DataData for the same earthquake as reported by different agenciesThe 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.MagDepthTime GMT2026-04-4EpicenterAgency5.3211 km131 mi16:23:20.4New Ireland Region, Papua New GuineaGFZ (German Research Centre for Geosciences)Aftershocks for this quakeNo aftershocks have been recorded so far. When aftershocks are detected, we will update this section.What are aftershocks?Larger earthquakes (above magnitude 5 or so) such as this one are usually followed by smaller ones known as aftershocks that occur in the same area during the days, weeks, months or even years after the main shock.[More info]What about this quake?Based on its magnitude, the fault that was active during the quake likely ruptured beneath a surface area of approximately 20 km2 (8 square miles) as a first-order estimate. The length of the rupture zone thus was probably around 8 km (5 mi).[More info]Recorded aftershocks, latest first (0 quake)Apr 4, 2026 04:23 pm (Universal Time)9 minutes ago5.3211 km0 km - This quakeSouth Pacific Ocean, 89 km SW of Ambitle Island, Papua New GuineaMain Shock (this quake)MoreMap of aftershocksEarthquake statisticsAverage number of earthquakesBased on data from the past 26 years and our earthquake archive back to 1900, there are about 61 quakes on average per year in the area near the epicenter of this quake (within 100 km/61 mi):Mag. 8 or higher: 0.02 quakes per year (or 1 quake every 41.7 years)Mag. 7 or higher: 0.19 quakes per year (or 1 quake every 5.2 years)Mag. 6 or higher: 1.37 quakes per yearMag. 5 or higher: 17.1 quakes per yearMag. 4 or higher: 69 quakes per year (or 5.7 quakes per month)Mag. 3 or higher: 132 quakes per year (or 11 quakes per month)Mag. 2 or higher: 133 quakes per year (or 11.1 quakes per month)The area where this quake occurred has a very high level of seismic activity. It has had at least 3 quakes above magnitude 8 since 1900, which suggests that larger earthquakes of this size occur infrequently, probably on average approximately every 40 to 45 years.Number of quakes per yearPrevious quakes in the same area of this earthquake