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Earthquakes Fact Sheet (Newcastle M5.4 earthquake, 30th anniversary, 4 pages)

Created 17/10/2025

Updated 17/10/2025

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An earthquake is the sudden release of energy and ground shaking resulting from rocks breaking and moving along a fault line under stress from plate tectonic forces. The focus is the initiation point of the earthquake deep within the Earth, while the epicentre is the vertical projection of the focus on the Earth’s surface. Earthquakes most commonly occur near the boundaries of tectonic plates, such as around the ‘Pacific Rim of Fire.’ However, they can also occur within stable tectonic regions, like Australia. It is important to remember that large earthquakes can occur anywhere in Australia, and without warning, even in regions of low levels historical seismicity. At 10.27 am on Thursday, 28 December 1989, Newcastle was devastated by an ML 5.6 (MW 5.4) earthquake. This was one of the most significant natural disasters in Australia’s history. This flyer was prepared for the Newcastle Museum to mark the 30th anniversary of this disaster.

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Additional Info

Field Value
Title Earthquakes Fact Sheet (Newcastle M5.4 earthquake, 30th anniversary, 4 pages)
Language eng
Licence Not Specified
Landing Page https://data.gov.au/data/dataset/32e28b18-cf2c-4121-bfe8-c79d6e71f0da
Contact Point
Geoscience Australia Data
clientservices@ga.gov.au
Reference Period 31/07/2019
Geospatial Coverage
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
{
  "coordinates": [
    [
      [
        151.4637,
        -33.0955
      ],
      [
        152.0022,
        -33.0955
      ],
      [
        152.0022,
        -32.7668
      ],
      [
        151.4637,
        -32.7668
      ],
      [
        151.4637,
        -33.0955
      ]
    ]
  ],
  "type": "Polygon"
}
Data Portal Geoscience Australia

Data Source

This dataset was originally found on Geoscience Australia "Earthquakes Fact Sheet (Newcastle M5.4 earthquake, 30th anniversary, 4 pages)". Please visit the source to access the original metadata of the dataset:
https://ecat.ga.gov.au/geonetwork/srv/eng/csw/dataset/earthquakes-fact-sheet-newcastle-m5-4-earthquake-30th-anniversary-4-pages