Nov. 11, 2004
USGS

A major earthquake occurred at 21:26:44 (UTC) on Thursday, November 11, 2004. The magnitude 7.3 event has been located in KEPULAUAN ALOR, INDONESIA. The hypocentral depth was estimated to be 38 km (24 miles). (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)

Nov. 11 (Bloomberg) -- An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.3 struck an area in the sea 100 kilometers (60 miles) north of Dili, the capital of East Timor, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

The quake occurred at 5:26 a.m. East Timor time today and was centered at a depth of 38 kilometers in Indonesia's Kepulauan Alor region, the USGS said on its Web site. It was centered 355 kilometers from Ende, in the Indonesian island of Flores, the report said.

``Earthquakes of this size sometimes generate local tsunamis that can be destructive along coasts located near the earthquake epicenter,'' the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said on its Web site. ``Authorities in the region of the epicenter should be aware of this possibility.''

The Center said there isn't a tsunami threat from the quake to coastlines in the Pacific Ocean.

Earthquakes are common in Indonesia and its regions because the archipelago is on the seismically and volcanically active Pacific ``Ring of Fire.''

Quakes of more than 6 in magnitude may cause serious damage and casualties in populated areas.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000080&sid=aB1mWIirfTUM&refer=asia


Magnitude 7.3
Date-Time Thursday, November 11, 2004 at 21:26:44 (UTC)
= Coordinated Universal Time
Friday, November 12, 2004 at 5:26:44 AM
= local time at epicenter
Location 8.137°S, 124.791°E
Depth 37.8 km (23.5 miles)
Region KEPULAUAN ALOR, INDONESIA
Distances 100 km (62 miles) WNW (300°) from DILI, East Timor
262 km (163 miles) NNE (31°) from Kupang, Timor, Indonesia
353 km (219 miles) ENE (77°) from Ende, Flores, Indonesia
Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 11.5 km (7.1 miles); depth +/- 30 km (18.6 miles)

Source U.S. Geological Survey, National Earthquake Information Center
World Data Center for Seismology, Denver

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/usqsci.htm