This list is heavily biased to recent years or due to the development and widespread deployment of seismometers.
Large earthquakes were not less common in the past, just records detailed enough to make magnitude estimates.Rank 10
Date : July 8, 1730
Location : Valparaiso, Chile
Name : 1730 Valparaiso earthquake
Magnitude : 8.7–9.0
The 1730 Valparaiso earthquake occurred at 08:45 UTC on July 8. It had an estimated magnitude of 8.7 and triggered a major tsunami with an estimated magnitude of Mt=8.75, that inundated the lower parts of Valparaiso. The earthquake caused severe damage from La Serena to Chillan, while the tsunami affected more than 1000 km of Chile’s coastline
Rank 9
Date : January 26, 1700
Location : Pacific Ocean, USA and Canada
Name : 1700 Cascadia earthquake
Magnitude : 8.7–9.2
The 1700 Cascadia earthquake was a magnitude 8.7 to 9.2 megathrust earthquake that occurred in the Cascadia subduction zone in 1700. The earthquake involved the Juan de Fuca Plate underlying the Pacific Ocean, from mid-Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada, south along the Pacific Northwest coast as far as northern California, USA. The length of the fault rupture was about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) with an average slip of 20 meters (22 yards).
Rank 8
Date : February 27, 2010
Location : Maule, Chile
Name : 2010 Chile earthquake
Magnitude : 8.8
The 2010 Chilean earthquake occurred off the coast of the Maule Region of Chile on February 27, 2010, at 03:34 local time (06:34 UTC), rating a magnitude of 8.8 on the moment magnitude scale, and lasting up to 3 minutes.
Rank 7
Date : January 31, 1906
Location : Ecuador – Colombia
Name : 1906 Ecuador-Colombia earthquake
Magnitude : 8.8
The 1906 Ecuador-Colombia earthquake occurred at 15:36 UTC on January 31, off the coast of Ecuador, near Esmeraldas. The earthquake had a magnitude of 8.8 and triggered a destructive tsunami that caused at least 500 casualties on the coast of Colombia.
Rank 6
Date : November 25, 1833
Location : Sumatra, Indonesia
Name : 1833 Sumatra earthquake
Magnitude : 8.8–9.2
The 1833 Sumatra earthquake occurred on November 25, 1833, about 22:00 local time, with an estimated magnitude in the range Mw= 8.8–9.2. It caused a large tsunami that flooded the southwestern coast of the island. There are no reliable records of the loss of life, with the casualties being described only as ‘numerous’. The magnitude of this event has been estimated using records of uplift taken from coral microatolls.
Rank 5
Date : March 11, 2011
Location : Sendai, Japan
Name : 2011 Sendai earthquake
Magnitude : 9.0
The 2011 Sendai earthquake and tsunami (東北地方太平洋沖地震, Tōhoku Chihō Taiheiyō-oki Jishin?, literally “Tōhoku region Pacific Ocean offshore earthquake”) was a 9.0 MW megathrust earthquake off the coast of Japan that occurred at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on 11 March 2011. The epicenter was reported to be 130 kilometers (81 mi) off the east coast of the Oshika Peninsula, Tōhoku, with the hypocenter at a depth of 24.4 km (15.2 mi)
Rank 4
Date : November 4, 1952
Location : Kamchatka, Russia (then USSR)
Name : Kamchatka earthquakes
Magnitude : 9.0
Three Kamchatka earthquakes, which occurred off the coast of Kamchatka Peninsula in far eastern Russia in 1737, 1923 and 1952, were megathrust earthquakes and caused tsunamis. They occurred where the Pacific Plate subducts under the Okhotsk Plate at the Kuril-Kamchatka Trench. The depth of the trench at the point of the earthquakes is 7,000–7,500 meters
Rank 3
Date : December 26, 2004
Location : Sumatra, Indonesia
Name : 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
Magnitude : 9.1
The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an undersea megathrust earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC on Sunday, December 26, 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. The quake itself is known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake. The resulting tsunami is given various names, including the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Asian Tsunami, Indonesian Tsunami, and Boxing Day Tsunami
Rank 2
Date : March 27, 1964
Location : Prince William Sound, Alaska, USA
Name : 1964 Alaska earthquake
Magnitude : 9.2
The 1964 Alaska earthquake, also known as the Great Alaskan Earthquake, the Portage Earthquake and the Good Friday Earthquake, was a megathrust earthquake that began at 5:36 P.M. AST on Good Friday, March 27, 1964. Across south-central Alaska, ground fissures, collapsing buildings, and tsunamis resulting from the temblor caused about 131 deaths.
Rank 1
Date : May 22, 1960
Location : Valdivia, Chile
Name : 1960 Valdivia earthquake
Magnitude : 9.5
The 1960 Valdivia earthquake or Great Chilean earthquake (Spanish: Gran terremoto de Chile/Valdivia) of 22 May 1960 is to date the most powerful earthquake ever recorded on earth, rating 9.5 on the moment magnitude scale. It occurred in the afternoon (19:11 GMT, 14:11 local time) and its resulting tsunami affected southern Chile, Hawaii, Japan, the Philippines, eastern New Zealand, southeast Australia, and the Aleutian Islands in Alaska.
Large earthquakes were not less common in the past, just records detailed enough to make magnitude estimates.Rank 10
Date : July 8, 1730
Location : Valparaiso, Chile
Name : 1730 Valparaiso earthquake
Magnitude : 8.7–9.0
The 1730 Valparaiso earthquake occurred at 08:45 UTC on July 8. It had an estimated magnitude of 8.7 and triggered a major tsunami with an estimated magnitude of Mt=8.75, that inundated the lower parts of Valparaiso. The earthquake caused severe damage from La Serena to Chillan, while the tsunami affected more than 1000 km of Chile’s coastline
Rank 9
Date : January 26, 1700
Location : Pacific Ocean, USA and Canada
Name : 1700 Cascadia earthquake
Magnitude : 8.7–9.2
The 1700 Cascadia earthquake was a magnitude 8.7 to 9.2 megathrust earthquake that occurred in the Cascadia subduction zone in 1700. The earthquake involved the Juan de Fuca Plate underlying the Pacific Ocean, from mid-Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada, south along the Pacific Northwest coast as far as northern California, USA. The length of the fault rupture was about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) with an average slip of 20 meters (22 yards).
Rank 8
Date : February 27, 2010
Location : Maule, Chile
Name : 2010 Chile earthquake
Magnitude : 8.8
The 2010 Chilean earthquake occurred off the coast of the Maule Region of Chile on February 27, 2010, at 03:34 local time (06:34 UTC), rating a magnitude of 8.8 on the moment magnitude scale, and lasting up to 3 minutes.
Rank 7
Date : January 31, 1906
Location : Ecuador – Colombia
Name : 1906 Ecuador-Colombia earthquake
Magnitude : 8.8
The 1906 Ecuador-Colombia earthquake occurred at 15:36 UTC on January 31, off the coast of Ecuador, near Esmeraldas. The earthquake had a magnitude of 8.8 and triggered a destructive tsunami that caused at least 500 casualties on the coast of Colombia.
Rank 6
Date : November 25, 1833
Location : Sumatra, Indonesia
Name : 1833 Sumatra earthquake
Magnitude : 8.8–9.2
The 1833 Sumatra earthquake occurred on November 25, 1833, about 22:00 local time, with an estimated magnitude in the range Mw= 8.8–9.2. It caused a large tsunami that flooded the southwestern coast of the island. There are no reliable records of the loss of life, with the casualties being described only as ‘numerous’. The magnitude of this event has been estimated using records of uplift taken from coral microatolls.
Rank 5
Date : March 11, 2011
Location : Sendai, Japan
Name : 2011 Sendai earthquake
Magnitude : 9.0
The 2011 Sendai earthquake and tsunami (東北地方太平洋沖地震, Tōhoku Chihō Taiheiyō-oki Jishin?, literally “Tōhoku region Pacific Ocean offshore earthquake”) was a 9.0 MW megathrust earthquake off the coast of Japan that occurred at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on 11 March 2011. The epicenter was reported to be 130 kilometers (81 mi) off the east coast of the Oshika Peninsula, Tōhoku, with the hypocenter at a depth of 24.4 km (15.2 mi)
Rank 4
Date : November 4, 1952
Location : Kamchatka, Russia (then USSR)
Name : Kamchatka earthquakes
Magnitude : 9.0
Three Kamchatka earthquakes, which occurred off the coast of Kamchatka Peninsula in far eastern Russia in 1737, 1923 and 1952, were megathrust earthquakes and caused tsunamis. They occurred where the Pacific Plate subducts under the Okhotsk Plate at the Kuril-Kamchatka Trench. The depth of the trench at the point of the earthquakes is 7,000–7,500 meters
Rank 3
Date : December 26, 2004
Location : Sumatra, Indonesia
Name : 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
Magnitude : 9.1
The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an undersea megathrust earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC on Sunday, December 26, 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. The quake itself is known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake. The resulting tsunami is given various names, including the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Asian Tsunami, Indonesian Tsunami, and Boxing Day Tsunami
Rank 2
Date : March 27, 1964
Location : Prince William Sound, Alaska, USA
Name : 1964 Alaska earthquake
Magnitude : 9.2
The 1964 Alaska earthquake, also known as the Great Alaskan Earthquake, the Portage Earthquake and the Good Friday Earthquake, was a megathrust earthquake that began at 5:36 P.M. AST on Good Friday, March 27, 1964. Across south-central Alaska, ground fissures, collapsing buildings, and tsunamis resulting from the temblor caused about 131 deaths.
Rank 1
Date : May 22, 1960
Location : Valdivia, Chile
Name : 1960 Valdivia earthquake
Magnitude : 9.5
The 1960 Valdivia earthquake or Great Chilean earthquake (Spanish: Gran terremoto de Chile/Valdivia) of 22 May 1960 is to date the most powerful earthquake ever recorded on earth, rating 9.5 on the moment magnitude scale. It occurred in the afternoon (19:11 GMT, 14:11 local time) and its resulting tsunami affected southern Chile, Hawaii, Japan, the Philippines, eastern New Zealand, southeast Australia, and the Aleutian Islands in Alaska.