Top 10 most powerful earthquakes (modern record, by magnitude)
- 1960 — Valdivia, Chile (Mw 9.5) — 22 May 1960. Largest instrumentally recorded quake; widespread damage, major trans-Pacific tsunami.
- 1964 — Prince William Sound (Alaska, USA) (Mw 9.2) — 27 March 1964. Long rupture (~1,000 km), major tsunami; greatest US earthquake.
- 2004 — Sumatra–Andaman (Indian Ocean) (Mw 9.1–9.3) — 26 December 2004. Massive tsunami across Indian Ocean; ~230,000+ deaths.
- 2011 — Tōhoku (Japan) (Mw 9.0–9.1) — 11 March 2011. Huge tsunami, widespread coastal destruction, nuclear plant crises.
- 1952 — Kamchatka (Soviet Union / Russia) (Mw ~9.0) — 4 November 1952. Large tsunami across the Pacific.
- 2010 — Maule / Bio-Bío (Chile) (Mw 8.8) — 27 February 2010. Severe damage and casualties in central Chile; Pacific-wide tsunami effects.
- 1965 — Rat Islands (Alaska, USA) (Mw 8.7) — 3–4 February 1965. Large remote event with tsunami reported; little local damage.
- 1950 — Assam–Tibet (India/China) (Mw 8.6–8.7) — 15 August 1950. Massive inland rupture, large landslides and significant local loss of life.
- 1946 — Aleutian Islands (Alaska, USA) (Mw 8.6) — 1 April 1946. Generated Pacific tsunami (notably damaged Hawaii).
- 2012 — Off West Coast of Northern Sumatra (Mw 8.6) — 11 April 2012. Very large strike-slip/complex event; limited tsunami and relatively low casualties due to offshore epicenter.
Notes:
- Magnitudes listed are moment magnitude (Mw) where available.
- Rankings use instrumentally recorded/modern estimates; several pre-instrumental historical quakes (
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