Moderate magnitude 4.5 earthquake at 17 km depth20 Mar 02:25 UTC: First to report: EMSC after 7 minutes.I didn't feel itI felt this quakeEarthquake detailsDate & timeMar 20, 2026 02:18:32 UTC - Local time at epicenterFriday, Mar 20, 2026, at 02:18 am (Universal Time GMT +0)Statusconfirmed (manually revised)Magnitude4.5Depth16.7 kmEpicenter latitude / longitude23.56°N / 121.38°EHualien, Taiwan, TaiwanSeismic antipode23.56°S / 58.62°WParaguayQuality44 seismic stationsShaking intensityIV Light shaking near epicenterFelt0 reportsPrimary data sourceEMSC (European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre)Nearest volcanoUnnamed 24.00°N/121.83°E (67 km / 42 mi)Weather at epicenter at time of quakeClear Sky 23.1°C (74 F), humidity: 73%, wind: 3 m/s (6 kts) from ENEEstimated seismic energy released3.5 x 1011 joules (98.6 megawatt hours, equivalent to 84.8 tons of TNT) | equivalent to ONE quake of magnitude 4.5 | about seismic energy18 minutes agoMar 20, 2026 02:18 GMT / Mar 20, 2026 02:18 am (Universal Time)Lat / Lng: 23.56 / 121.38: TaiwanSource: EMSCOther sources: RaspberryShake: 4.6 / 17 km, CWB: 4.6 / 17 kmDetail info | You felt it? - Report it!';storedMarkers.push(['quake-22824921',23.56000,121.38000,'18 minutes ago: Mag. 4.5, Taiwan',html,'quakes-6-24.png',25,25,12,12,125]); 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 Taiwan TaiwanNearby placesThe closest larger town where the quake might have been felt is Taichung, a city of 2.9 million people in Taiwan, in 96 km (60 mi) distance northwest of the epicenter. People likely experienced weak shaking there. Many smaller towns and villages are located closer to the epicenter and might have experienced stronger shaking. In the capital of Taiwan, Taipei, 167 km (104 mi) away from the epicenter, the earthquake was probably felt as very weak shaking.The following table shows some of the places that might have been affected (or not) by the shaking.DistancePlaceMax. shaking intensity(*)RegionCountry51 km (32 mi)S of epicenterChishang(pop: 7,980)III: WeakTaitung, TaiwanTaiwan52 km (32 mi)NE of epicenterHualien City(pop: 99,500)III: WeakHualien, TaiwanTaiwan61 km (38 mi)S of epicenterGuanshan(pop: 8,160)III: WeakTaitung, TaiwanTaiwan61 km (38 mi)NW of epicenterPuli(pop: 86,400)III: WeakNantou, TaiwanTaiwan67 km (42 mi)W of epicenterLugu(pop: 17,700)III: WeakNantou, TaiwanTaiwan74 km (46 mi)W of epicenterZhushan(pop: 44,100)III: WeakNantou, TaiwanTaiwan81 km (50 mi)W of epicenterLinnei(pop: 16,900)III: WeakYunlin, TaiwanTaiwan83 km (51 mi)W of epicenterErshui(pop: 14,100)III: WeakChanghua, TaiwanTaiwan83 km (52 mi)NW of epicenterNantou(pop: 105,700)III: WeakTaiwanTaiwan84 km (52 mi)NW of epicenterZhongxing New Village(pop: 25,500)III: WeakNantou, TaiwanTaiwan84 km (52 mi)NW of epicenterCaotun(pop: 96,800)III: WeakNantou, TaiwanTaiwan87 km (54 mi)W of epicenterDouliu(pop: 107,900)III: WeakYunlin, TaiwanTaiwan87 km (54 mi)W of epicenterTianzhong(pop: 34,900)III: WeakChanghua, TaiwanTaiwan89 km (55 mi)NW of epicenterShetou(pop: 36,600)III: WeakChanghua, TaiwanTaiwan89 km (55 mi)NW of epicenterWufeng(pop: 65,600)III: WeakTaichung City, TaiwanTaiwan92 km (57 mi)S of epicenterTaitung(pop: 103,300)III: WeakTaiwanTaiwan92 km (57 mi)W of epicenterCitong(pop: 25,000)III: WeakYunlin, TaiwanTaiwan93 km (58 mi)NW of epicenterYuanlin(pop: 124,700)III: WeakChanghua, TaiwanTaiwan94 km (58 mi)W of epicenterBeidou(pop: 33,300)III: WeakChanghua, TaiwanTaiwan94 km (58 mi)NW of epicenterYongjing(pop: 35,400)III: WeakChanghua, TaiwanTaiwan95 km (59 mi)NW of epicenterTianwei(pop: 26,100)III: WeakChanghua, TaiwanTaiwan95 km (59 mi)W of epicenterChiayi City(pop: 263,200)III: WeakChiayi, TaiwanTaiwan96 km (60 mi)NW of epicenterTaichung(pop: 2,850,300)III: WeakTaiwanTaiwan97 km (60 mi)W of epicenterXiluo(pop: 37,200)III: WeakYunlin, TaiwanTaiwan99 km (62 mi)W of epicenterPitou(pop: 29,300)III: WeakChanghua, TaiwanTaiwan101 km (63 mi)NW of epicenterChang-hua(pop: 226,600)III: WeakChanghua, TaiwanTaiwan102 km (63 mi)NW of epicenterChanghua(pop: 226,600)III: WeakTaiwanTaiwan102 km (63 mi)NW of epicenterXihu(pop: 54,000)III: WeakChanghua, TaiwanTaiwan113 km (70 mi)W of epicenterXinying(pop: 75,000)III: WeakTainan, TaiwanTaiwan125 km (78 mi)NW of epicenterMiaoli(pop: 86,300)II: Very weakTaiwanTaiwan129 km (80 mi)SW of epicenterYongkang(pop: 233,700)II: Very weakTainan, TaiwanTaiwan134 km (83 mi)N of epicenterZhudong(pop: 96,500)II: Very weakHsinchu County, TaiwanTaiwan134 km (83 mi)N of epicenterToufen Township(pop: 106,300)II: Very weakMiaoli, TaiwanTaiwan135 km (84 mi)SW of epicenterTainan(pop: 1,856,600)II: Very weakTaiwanTaiwan138 km (86 mi)N of epicenterYilan(pop: 94,200)II: Very weakTaiwanTaiwan145 km (90 mi)N of epicenterHsinchu(pop: 453,500)II: Very weakTaiwanTaiwan147 km (91 mi)N of epicenterZhubei(pop: 212,700)II: Very weakHsinchu County, TaiwanTaiwan148 km (92 mi)N of epicenterDaxi(pop: 94,200)II: Very weakTaoyuan, TaiwanTaiwan167 km (104 mi)N of epicenterTaipei(pop: 7,871,900)II: Very weakTaiwanTaiwanNotes:(*) 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 GMT2026-03-20EpicenterAgency4.517 km10.4 mi02:18:32.9TAIWANEMSC (European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre)4.617 km10.4 mi02:18:32Taiwan0 km (0 mi) epicenter difference with EMSCRaspberryShake (RaspberryShake)4.617 km10.4 mi02:18:0053.3 km SSW of Hualien County Hall0 km (0 mi) epicenter difference with EMSCCWB (Central Weather Bureau)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 3 km2 (1 square miles) as a first-order estimate. The length of the rupture zone thus was probably around 3 km (2 mi).[More info]Recorded aftershocks, latest first (0 quake)Mar 20, 2026 02:18 am (Universal Time)18 minutes ago4.517 km0 km - This quakeTaiwanMain 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 312 quakes on average per year in the area near the epicenter of this quake (within 100 km/61 mi):Mag. 7 or higher: 0.1 quakes per year (or 1 quake every 9.7 years)Mag. 6 or higher: 1.04 quakes per yearMag. 5 or higher: 9.1 quakes per yearMag. 4 or higher: 145 quakes per year (or 12.1 quakes per month)Mag. 3 or higher: 249 quakes per year (or 20.8 quakes per month)Mag. 2 or higher: 304 quakes per year (or 25.4 quakes per month)Mag. 1 or higher: 4,900 quakes per year (or 13.3 quakes per day)The area where this quake occurred has a very high level of seismic activity. It has had at least 13 quakes above magnitude 7 since 1900, which suggests that larger earthquakes of this size occur infrequently, probably on average approximately every 5 to 10 years.Number of quakes per yearPrevious quakes in the same area of this earthquakeThe earthquake occurred 8 days after a magnitude 5.2 earthquake had hit on Thursday, Mar 12, 2026, at 08:14 pm local time (Asia/Taipei GMT +8) in 28 km (17 mi) distance to the northeast:Mag. 5.2 earthquake 26 km S of Hualien City - Taiwan - Mar 12, 2026 - The largest quake near the epicenter of this quake during the 10 years before was an event of magnitude 7.4. It had occurred 1 year 50 weeks earlier, on Wednesday, Apr 3, 2024, at 07:58 am local time (Asia/Taipei GMT +8) in Taiwan:Mag. 7.4 earthquake 15 km S of Hualien City - Taiwan - Apr 3, 2024 - The strongest-ever (since 1900) recorded quake in this area measured magnitude 8.2. It had occurred 106 years ago earlier, on Saturday, Jun 5, 1920, at 04:21 am local time (Universal Time GMT +0) in Okinawa, Taiwan:Mag. 8.2 earthquake 47 km SE of Hualien City - Taiwan - Jun 5, 1920 - Below is a list and map of larger or recent quakes that had occurred near the epicenter before this earthquake (within up to 100 km/61 mi distance, up to 300 km/183 mi for very large quakes above mag. 7). Filter and sort the list by magnitude or time.Max results102050100AllMagnitudeAll2+3+4+5+6+7+8+Time before48 hours1 week30 days1 year5 years30 yearsAny ageDate and TimeMagDepthDistanceLocationDetailsMapMar 16, 07:19 am (Taipei)4.07.4 km98 km (61 mi) to the SW 21 km southeast of Xinying, Taiwan I FELT ITInfoMar 12, 11:46 pm (Taipei)4.319 km29 km (18 mi) to the NE 25.1 km SSW of Hualien County HallInfoMar 12, 08:14 pm (Taipei)5.220 km28 km (17 mi) to the NE 26 km S of Hualien City, Taiwan 12 reportsInfoMar 5, 06:02 am (Taipei)4.120 km58 km (36 mi) to the N Taiwan 4 reportsInfoMar 3, 11:34 pm (Taipei)4.510 km100 km (62 mi) to the SW 27 km southeast of Xinying, Taiwan 2 reportsInfoJan 18, 08:47 am (Universal Time)4.67.2 km95 km (59 mi) to the NEPhilippine Sea, 44 km northeast of Hualien City, Taiwan 1 reportInfoJan 16, 08:49 am (Universal Time)4.520 km70 km (43 mi) to the E 54 km SE of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoDec 24, 2025 05:47 pm (Taipei)6.010 km81 km (50 mi) to the S 12 km northeast of Taitung, Taiwan 26 reportsInfoApr 3, 2024 08:11 am (Taipei)6.414 km68 km (42 mi) to the NEPhilippine Sea, 16 km northeast of Hualien City, Taiwan 32 reportsInfoApr 3, 2024 07:58 am (Taipei)7.440 km38 km (24 mi) to the NEPhilippine Sea, 16 km south of Hualien City, Taiwan 232 reportsInfoSep 18, 2022 02:44 pm (Taipei)6.910 km47 km (29 mi) to the S 47 km northeast of Taitung, Taiwan 42 reportsInfoSep 17, 2022 09:41 pm (Taipei)6.510 km49 km (31 mi) to the SPhilippine Sea, 49 km northeast of Taitung, Taiwan 65 reportsInfoMar 23, 2022 01:41 am (Taipei)6.724 km31 km (19 mi) to the SEPhilippine Sea, 66 km south of Hualien City, Taiwan 89 reportsInfoFeb 6, 2018 11:50 pm (Taipei)6.417 km70 km (43 mi) to the NE 18 km north of Hualien City, Taiwan 52 reportsInfoMar 4, 2010 08:18 am (Taipei)6.321 km93 km (58 mi) to the SWKaohsiung, 40 km northwest of Taitung, TaiwanInfoDec 19, 2009 09:02 pm (Taipei)6.443 km35 km (22 mi) to the NEPhilippine Sea, 20 km south of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoDec 26, 2006 08:26 pm (GMT +8)7.110 km214 km (133 mi) to the SWSouth China Sea, 31 km southwest of Hengchun, TaiwanInfoDec 10, 2003 12:38 pm (Taipei)6.810 km58 km (36 mi) to the SPhilippine Sea, 38 km northeast of Taitung, TaiwanInfoMar 31, 2002 02:52 pm (GMT +8)7.133 km114 km (71 mi) to the NEPhilippine Sea, 67 km northeast of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoJun 11, 2000 02:23 am (Taipei)6.433 km35 km (22 mi) to the NW 29 km ESE of Puli, TaiwanInfoSep 26, 1999 07:52 am (Taipei)6.517 km30 km (19 mi) to the NW 32 km southeast of Puli, TaiwanInfoSep 22, 1999 08:14 am (Taipei)6.426 km29 km (18 mi) to the NW 33 km southeast of Puli, TaiwanInfoSep 21, 1999 05:46 am (Taipei)6.433 km46 km (29 mi) to the SWKaohsiung, 72 km north of Taitung, TaiwanInfoSep 21, 1999 01:47 am (Taipei)7.733 km47 km (29 mi) to the NW 21 km S of Puli, TaiwanInfoDec 14, 1990 03:50 am (Taipei)6.710 km31 km (19 mi) to the NEPhilippine Sea, 28 km south of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoAug 3, 1989 07:31 pm (GMT +8)6.610.7 km83 km (52 mi) to the SE 109 km SSE of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoNov 15, 1986 05:20 am (Taipei)7.434 km43 km (27 mi) to the NE 8 km SSW of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoDec 23, 1978 07:23 pm (GMT +8)7.033 km79 km (49 mi) to the SEPhilippine Sea, 94 km southeast of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoJul 23, 1978 10:42 pm (Taipei)7.417 km143 km (89 mi) to the SPhilippine Sea, 26 km north of Lan Yu Island, TaiwanInfoApr 24, 1972 05:57 pm (Taipei)7.022 km16 km (10.1 mi) to the EPhilippine Sea, 46 km south of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoJan 25, 1972 11:41 am (GMT +8)7.125 km79 km (49 mi) to the SEPhilippine Sea, 93 km northeast of Taitung, TaiwanInfoJan 25, 1972 10:06 am (GMT +8)7.325 km138 km (85 mi) to the SEPhilippine Sea, 99 km northeast of Lan Yu Island, TaiwanInfoMar 13, 1966 01:31 am (GMT +9)7.530 km137 km (85 mi) to the NEPhilippine Sea, 56 km southwest of Yonaguni-jima Island, Okinawa, JapanInfoFeb 24, 1957 04:26 am (Taipei)6.955 km49 km (31 mi) to the NE 3.1 km southwest of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoNov 25, 1951 02:50 am (Taipei)7.830 km55 km (34 mi) to the S 38 km north of Taitung, TaiwanInfoNov 25, 1951 02:47 am (Taipei)7.325 km59 km (36 mi) to the S 34 km north of Taitung, TaiwanInfoOct 22, 1951 01:43 pm (Taipei)6.920 km24 km (15 mi) to the N 31 km southwest of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoOct 22, 1951 11:29 am (Taipei)7.225 km40 km (25 mi) to the N 27 km west of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoOct 22, 1951 05:34 am (Taipei)7.425 km8.4 km (5.2 mi) to the S 58 km south of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoDec 6, 1938 11:00 pm (Universal Time)7.015 km81 km (50 mi) to the S Taiwan regionInfoSep 7, 1938 04:03 am (Universal Time)7.015 km30 km (19 mi) to the NE 21 km southwest of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoDec 8, 1937 08:32 am (Universal Time)6.915 km73 km (45 mi) to the S Taiwan regionInfoSep 1, 1922 07:16 pm (Universal Time)7.620 km109 km (68 mi) to the NEPhilippine Sea, 59 km northeast of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoJun 5, 1920 04:21 am (Universal Time)8.220 km60 km (37 mi) to the EPhilippine Sea, 48 km southeast of Hualien City, TaiwanInfoDec 20, 1919 08:37 pm (Universal Time)7.420 km122 km (76 mi) to the SPhilippine Sea, 59 km northeast of Lan Yu Island, TaiwanInfoJul 4, 1917 09:38 am (GMT +9)7.70 km229 km (143 mi) to the NE Japan: Taiwan: Ne of TaiwanInfoMap of earlier quakes in the area of this quakeMax results102050100AllMagnitudeAll2+3+4+5+6+7+8+Time before48 hours1 week30 days1 year5 years30 yearsAny ageOldest quakes are shown in yellow, most recent in red.[quakes -][quakes +][smaller][bigger]