The New Guinea region has been struck by the fourth strong earthquake in five weeks.
The latest, which occurred at 12:55 p.m. Hawaii time in Papua New Guinea, had a magnitude of 6.8, the US Geological Survey said.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center on Oahu said like the others, this tremor failed to generate a wide-ranging tsunami.
Strong geologic forces are at play in the area around Papua New Guinea, shown at left center, and the Solomon Islands, center and right-center. Oregon State University image.
Previous quakes in the region and their magnitudes include one of 6.6 that occurred Sunday in the Bouganville area of Papua New Guinea, one of 7.1 that hit April 5 in the mountains of Papua, Indonesia and one of 6.5 that struck March 10 in the New Britain area of New Guinea.
All dates are Hawaii time, which is 20 hours behind local time in New Guinea.
Like its neighboring Solomon Islands, the New Guinea region is located in an area of significant tectonic activity.
According to the USGS, the area has seen 22 earthquakes of magnitude 7.5 or greater since 1900.
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