Earthquakes in NSW (magnitude 3.0 or more) since January 2005

This page lists earthquakes that have occured in NSW since January 2005 that have had Richter magnitudes of 3.0 or more.
This page will be updated regularly so make sure you stay tuned for the latest information.

There have been ~ 80 more earthquakes with magnitudes between 2.0 and 2.9, and these have not been listed here.
For more information on these or other earthquakes, please visit Geoscience Australia.

Important earthquakes in NSW since 1940 (i.e. magnitude 5.0 and above) are tabulated below:

Earthquake risk maps did not note the Newcastle region as being of particularly high seismicity until the damaging earthquake there in December 1989. In retrospect, the historical record shows quite a number of felt events in the region in the previous 100 years.

Although the Newcastle earthquake of December 1989 (magnitude 5.7) was not Australia's largest, this earthquake is it's most significant, in that it caused 13 deaths. Nine of these were at the Newcastle Workers club.

The earthquake caused $1.5 billion in damage. Another earthquake at nearby Ellalong, 5 years later (magnitude 5.4) caused another $40 million in damage, but did not cause any injuries or fatalities.

For more information on the Newcastle earthquake, visit the website of the Newcastle Regional Museum.

The Dalton Gunning region has long been noted as an important source of seismic activity. Damaging earthquakes were located there in November 1934 (magnitude 5.6) and March 1949 (magnitude 5.5), and smaller earthquakes are still occurring in the region.

Many of the earthquakes felt in Sydney have originated to the south of the city. Significant earthquakes have occurred near Picton (1960), and near Bowral (1961 and 1994)

The Snowy Mountains region was one of the first to be intensely monitored and studied for earthquakes, partially because of the commencement of major engineering works for the Snowy Mountains Hydo-electric scheme in the 1950's. The Australian National University maintained up to 20 seismic stations in the area through the 1950's and 1960's.

Monitoring of Earthquakes

The first professionally operated seismograph in Australia was set up the Jesuit Religious Order at Riverview College, Sydney, in 1909, and this station still operates today.

Only a few other seismographs were set up in Australia (in the major capital cities) from that time until the late 1950's, when rapid world-wide expansion in the number of seismographs occurred (partially in response to the newly deveolped atomic bomb).

Today, Australian earthquakes are principally monitored by the Australian National Seismograph Network (ANSN), operated by Geoscience Australia (based in Canberra, ACT). Theer are close to 100 stations in this network, and numerous others operated by other authorities.

In NSW, the Snowy Mountains Authority and Sydney Water operate seismographs in their regions of interest, or else contract the Seismology Research Centre (based in Melbourne) to operate seismographs for them. This data is not usually available to the general public.

Other private individuals and schools also operate useful stations at a number of locations in NSW. for more information. We can also help you set up a working seismograph (for a cost of approximately $500).

Older NSW events

The map below shows earthquakes (magnitude 3.0 and above) in NSW from 1990 to August 2005.

Earthquake Risk

The map to the right shows the current risk map of Australia. This shows that the regions of greatest hazard in Australia are along the west and north-west coastal area of Western Australia, and in the Flinders Ranges region of South Australia. Smaller zones of activity occur in the highlands of Victoria, the Dalton-Gunning region of NSW, and off Rockhampton in Queensland.

More information can be obtained by contacting Geoscience Australia or the Australian Earthquake Engineering Society.