Earthquakes, Tsunamis, and Volcanoes of Southeast Asia

Earthquakes in this area are concentrated along the Indonesian island arc and the portion of the Circum-Pacific seismic belt which extends from New Guinea through Taiwan. Most of the tsunamis which have been reported from this area have occurred in the Banda, Molucca, and Celebes Seas of eastern Indonesia. A few tsunamis have been reported from the Sulu Sea, The northeastern quarter of the South China Sea, the Java Sea-Makassar Strait region, and the Indian Ocean side of Indonesia. Volcanic activity in this area is concentrated into three regions. The first extends along the Indonesian island arc from Sumatra through Ceram. The second borders the Pacific Ocean from New Guinea through the Philippine Islands and Taiwan. The third, a region of submarine volcanism, lies in the South China Sea off South Vietnam.