| Magnitude | 5.0 |
| Alert | Strong |
| Depth | 143.5 km |
| Coordinates | -5.670, 147.553 |
| UTC time | 1981-12-12 19:49:05.290 |
Earthquake details
Saturday, December 12, 1981 Earthquake
The earthquake hit Papua New Guinea on Saturday, December 12, 1981 at 19:49 UTC with a magnitude of 5.0. The closest known location in the current dataset is Lae (Papua New Guinea - PG), about 132.5 km away. The epicenter is located at longitude 147.553 and latitude -5.670.
| Location | Lae |
| Country | Papua New Guinea (PG) |
| Severity | Strong |
Earthquake map 1981-12-12
Closest countries
The 12 closest cities near the epicenter.
| Lae | 132.5 km |
| Mount Hagen | 368.6 km |
| Port Moresby | 426.1 km |
| Jayapura | 835.3 km |
| Abepura | 841.0 km |
| Merauke | 849.9 km |
| Arawa | 889.4 km |
| Wamena | 970.3 km |
| Cairns | 1267.8 km |
| Nabire | 1361.9 km |
| Honiara | 1430.5 km |
| Townsville | 1515.7 km |
Nearby earthquakes
The latest 8 earthquakes within 100 km of this epicenter.
M 4.9
Lae
Papua New Guinea · 2026-06-28 02:59 UTC
87.2 km
M 4.3
Lae
Papua New Guinea · 2026-06-22 18:24 UTC
168.6 km
M 5.0
Lae
Papua New Guinea · 2026-05-30 22:45 UTC
181.2 km
M 4.8
Lae
Papua New Guinea · 2026-05-22 19:32 UTC
117.1 km
M 5.0
Lae
Papua New Guinea · 2026-05-17 22:58 UTC
86.7 km
M 4.8
Lae
Papua New Guinea · 2026-04-04 10:48 UTC
128.4 km
M 4.1
Lae
Papua New Guinea · 2026-03-09 14:54 UTC
62.4 km
M 4.6
Lae
Papua New Guinea · 2026-02-21 05:03 UTC
103.4 km
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