The Earth RecordSaturday, 17 October 2026 (UTC)

← Back to the summary for 17 Oct

The detail behind the day

Tropical Cyclone CHAMPI-26 is a major storm.

Earthquakes of magnitude 4.5 or more

10earthquakes on the day

Strongest first. Magnitude is a log scale: each whole step is about 32 times more energy. Depth is how far below the surface the quake began; shallow ones shake the ground harder.

Time (UTC)MagnitudeDepthWhereCountry
05:065.710 kmnear Khuzdar, PakistanPakistan
13:595.210 kmnear Brisas Barra de Suchiate, MexicoMexico
01:034.910 kmnear Puerto Madero, MexicoMexico
08:594.810 kmnear Norsup, VanuatuVanuatu
04:194.8439 kmnear Alo, Wallis and FutunaWallis & Futuna
16:524.6189 kmnear Uyuni, BoliviaBolivia
12:464.669 kmnear Tambolaka, IndonesiaIndonesia
09:074.691 kmnear Pante Makasar, Timor LesteTimor-Leste
07:404.5145 kmnear Sola, VanuatuVanuatu
07:204.510 kmnear Ruteng, IndonesiaIndonesia

Where most of them struck

Mexico
2 · largest 5.2
Vanuatu
2 · largest 4.8
Indonesia
2 · largest 4.6
Pakistan
1 · largest 5.7
Wallis & Futuna
1 · largest 4.8
Bolivia
1 · largest 4.6
Timor-Leste
1 · largest 4.6

Counting smaller ones too, 44 earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more were logged worldwide. How many small quakes are recorded depends on how many seismometers are nearby, so this number is not compared with other years.

Source: USGS Earthquake Hazards Program. Magnitudes and places can be revised by USGS for weeks after an event.

Tropical storms and cyclones

AlertStormReported intensity
RedTropical Cyclone CHAMPI-26 (Philippines, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Japan) GDACS reportHurricane/Typhoon > 74 mph (maximum wind speed of 296 km/h)

The alert colour reflects the likely effect on people, not just wind speed. Red is the highest; green is a storm with little expected impact.

Sources: Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System (GDACS) and NASA EONET.

Volcanoes

32 more volcanoes on NASA’s activity tracker
AlertVolcano
NASA trackerAira Volcano, Japan
NASA trackerAmbae Volcano, Vanuatu
NASA trackerBezymianny Volcano, Russia
NASA trackerDukono Volcano, Indonesia
NASA trackerFuego Volcano, Guatemala
NASA trackerIbu Volcano, Indonesia
NASA trackerIvao Group Volcano, Russia
NASA trackerKanlaon Volcano, Philippines
NASA trackerKikai Volcano, Japan
NASA trackerKilauea Volcano, Hawaii
NASA trackerKrasheninnikov Volcano, Russia
NASA trackerLangila Volcano, Papua New Guinea
NASA trackerLewotobi Volcano, Indonesia
NASA trackerLewotolok Volcano, Indonesia
NASA trackerMarapi Volcano, Indonesia
NASA trackerMasaya Volcano, Nicaragua
NASA trackerMayon Volcano, Philippines
NASA trackerMerapi Volcano, Indonesia
NASA trackerNevados del Chillan Volcano, Chile
NASA trackerPopocatepetl Volcano, Mexico
NASA trackerPuracé Volcano, Colombia
NASA trackerReventador Volcano, Ecuador
NASA trackerRincon de la Vieja Volcano, Costa Rica
NASA trackerSabancaya Volcano, Peru
NASA trackerSangay Volcano, Ecuador
NASA trackerSanta Maria Volcano, Guatemala
NASA trackerSemeru Volcano, Indonesia
NASA trackerSheveluch Volcano, Russia
NASA trackerStromboli Volcano, Italy
NASA trackerSuwanosejima Volcano, Japan
NASA trackerTelica Volcano, Nicaragua
NASA trackerTitan Ridge Volcano, Papua New Guinea

Colour codes are the aviation scale: green is normal, yellow an advisory, orange a watch, red a warning. USGS rates US volcanoes only; the others come from NASA’s tracker of volcanoes with recent activity reports.

Sources: USGS Volcano Hazards Program, NASA EONET and USGS earthquakes for Campi Flegrei and Vesuvius.

Space weather

Kind of eventHighest level reached
Geomagnetic stormNone
Radio blackoutNone
Solar radiation stormNone

The planetary Kp index reached 3.0 on this day; 5 or more is a geomagnetic storm.

Highest Kp each day: 15 Oct 3.0 · 16 Oct 3.7 · 17 Oct 3.0

Source: NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center.

Climate readings

MeasureLatest valueReading dateHow it comparesSource
Pacific sea temperature (Niño 3.4)+3.3 °C against normalWeek to 14 Oct1st highest weekly reading since 1981NOAA CPC
Arctic sea ice extent6.7 million km²17 Oct21% below the 1981–2010 average; 11th lowest of 44 years for the dateNSIDC
Antarctic sea ice extent16.2 million km²17 Oct11% below the 1981–2010 average; 2nd lowest of 44 years for the dateNSIDC
Carbon dioxide, Mauna Loa427.3 ppm17 Oct2.2 ppm higher than a year earlierNOAA GML
Antarctic ozone hole25.1 million km²17 Oct2nd largest for the date since 1979; thinnest part 120 Dobson unitsNASA

These move slowly, so the latest reading may be a few days old. The summary page draws each one as a chart.