Moderate quake jolts Indonesian islands

A moderate quake with a magnitude of 5.0 jolted islands in Indonesia's Ceram Sea early on Sunday.

A moderate quake with a magnitude of 5.0 jolted islands in Indonesia's Ceram Sea early on Sunday, meteorologists said, but there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.

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The quake occurred at 1.11 IST on Sunday with its epicentre 312 kilometres south of Sorong in the eastern province of Irian Jaya at a depth of 14 kilometres, the US Geological Survey said.

The reading was based on the open-ended Moment Magnitude scale, now used by US seismologists, which measures the area of the fault that ruptured and the total energy released.

A measurement of five indicates a moderate earthquake.

Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity.

A strong earthquake struck the city of Yogyakarta and its surrounds on the main Indonesian island of Java on May 27, killing some 5,800 people.