5.7 earthquake rattles remote Australia

The earthquake struck near the border of the Northern Territory and South Australia. Photo / Thinkstock

A 5.7 magnitude earthquake has struck a remote area near the border of the Northern Territory and South Australia but there have been no reports of damage.

The quake was centred about 3km north of the South Australian border near Mulga Park Road and hit at 11.52pm (CST) on Sunday.

"I was up at my house when it happened," said a resident at the nearby Amata Aboriginal community in South Australia.

"It was a bit rattly and dogs were barking," said the resident, who did not wish to be named.

She said everyone at Amata had felt the earthquake, but there were no reports of damage from any of the 100 or so homes in the area.

Geoscience Australia said the 5.7 magnitude earthquake occurred at the surface.

Spokesman Chris Thompson said that last year another 5.7 magnitude earthquake had struck only about 30km away from where the latest one hit.

"There is not a great deal of activity around that exact location but we have little fault lines around the Flinders Ranges that are very seismically active," Mr Thompson said.

Because continental Australia is on a single tectonic plate, earthquakes tend to be less severe than in other parts of the world, he said.

- AAP