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Lisbon Earthquake (Portugal)
The Lisbon earthquake, also known as the Great Lisbon earthquake occurred in the Kingdom of Portugal at around 9:40 local time. This earthquake had wide-ranging effects on the society and culture in Europe because it had happened on their religious feast, and had destroyed almost every important church in each Roman Catholic city. The magnitude was 8.5-9.0, killing around 10,000-100,000 people. -
Krakatoa Eruption (Java/Sumatra)
This earthquake took place on Krakatoa, an uninhabited volcanic island near Indonesia, killing more than 36,000 people. It had a magnitude of 5.1, and a volcanic explosivity index of 6. When it first erupted, it sent ash clouds at least 22 miles above the island. All of the volcanic debris from its eruption caused fiery red sunsets around the world up to 3 years afterward. When it was over, most of the island was gone-only 1/3 of the island survived. -
Aleutian Earthquake (Alaska)
The Aleutian earthquake occurred near the Aleutian islands in Alaska with a magnitude of 8.6. It resulted in $26 million in damage and 165-173 casualties. The wave heights reached an estimated 115 feet in Alaska, and averaged 30 feet in Hawaii. -
Great Chilean Earthquake (Alaska)
The Great Chilean earthquake is called Valdivia in Spanish, also known as the most powerful earthquake ever recorded. It had a magnitude of 9.4-9.6, killing about 1,000 to 7,000 people in Chile. The earthquake occurred in the afternoon and lasted about ten minutes. -
Good Friday Earthquake
This earthquake is also known as the Great Alaskan earthquake, striking Alaska about 15 miles below Prince William Sound, halfway between Anchorage and Valdez. It was known as the second most powerful earthquake ever recorded with a magnitude of 9.2, and killed about 139 casualties. -
Hokkaido Earthquake (Japan)
This earthquake occurred in the sea of Japan, near the island of Hokkaido with a magnitude of 7.7 and a maximum intensity of VIII on the Mercalli Intensity Scale. It killed around 230 people. The maximum tsunami wave run up height was noted to be as much as 31 meters. -
Papua New Guinea Quake (Papua New Guinea)
Around 5:49 P.M. local time, this earthquake struck New Guinea and Australia with a magnitude of 7.0 and a maximum Mercalli Intensity of VIII (Severe). This damage caused about 2,183-2,700 deaths with thousands injured. This primarily destroyed 3 fishing villages along a 30 km stretch of beach, west of the West Sepik Province of Papua New Guinea (PNG). -
Sumatra Earthquake (Indonesia)
In 2004, the Sumatra earthquake also known as Indian Ocean earthquake, struck the West and North coasts of Northern Sumatra during the early morning. Having a magnitude of 9.1-9.3, it caused up to 227,000 deaths across countries. This is known as the 10th -deadliest natural disaster in history. -
Samoa Earthquake (Samoan Islands)
This earthquake took place in the Southern Pacific Ocean, adjacent to the Kermadec-Tonga subsection zone. It had a magnitude of 8.1 and had at least 189 fatalities with hundreds injured. This tsunami was the fifth tsunami studied by U.S. Geological Survey field teams in 15 years, and it presented many surprises. -
Chile Earthquake (Chile)
This earthquake occurred off the coast of central Chile, having a magnitude of 8.8 with intense shaking lasting for three minutes. By the time it was over, 5,000 people were dead and 2 million were left homeless. According to a risk management assessment firm, the earthquake did between $15 and $30 billion in damage to South American nation's economy. -
Tohoku Earthquake (Japan)
This earthquake occurred off the Pacific Coast of Tohoku, having a magnitude of 9.0-9.1. There were 15,896 deaths, 6157 injured, and 2,537 missing. It was recorded as the strongest earthquake Japan has ever experienced, causing $360 billion in damage.
