QuakeScout
Magnitude7.3

Reviewed by USGSChile66y ago

M7.3 earthquake 77 km NNE of Taltal, Chile

Friday, December 2, 1960, 09:10:48 UTC · 24.732°S, 70.297°W

A magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck 77 km NNE of Taltal, Chile on Friday, December 2, 1960, 09:10:48 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M8.2 on December 9, 1950.

Magnitude
7.3
Major · mw
Depth
35 km
Shallow
Felt reports
0
Did You Feel It?
Est. shaking
VII
Very strong (ShakeMap)
PAGER alert
None
Not issued
Tsunami
No flag
USGS feed

Outlined circle: this earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

1.3 megatons of TNT

That is about 89 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 2,818 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

121 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and South American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.

Depth: shallow

35 km

Shallow earthquakes (under 70 km) produce the strongest surface shaking for their size, so they are the ones most likely to cause damage near the epicenter.

Did You Feel It?

Where it was felt

No “Did You Feel It?” reports have been published for this event yet. If you felt it, you can add your report on the USGS website.

I felt it — report to USGS ↗

USGS PAGER estimate

Who was exposed to shaking

USGS publishes PAGER impact estimates for significant earthquakes, usually within an hour. No PAGER estimate is available for this event.

After the main event

Aftershocks within 200 km

USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 200 km in the 30 days after this event.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 34 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 8.2121 km SSE of San Pedro de Atacama, ChileDecember 9, 1950 · 256 km E of this epicenter
  2. 8.060 km W of Diego de Almagro, ChileDecember 4, 1918 · 196 km S of this epicenter
  3. 7.583 km NNE of Taltal, ChileJuly 13, 1936 · 14 km E of this epicenter
  4. 7.550 km WNW of Diego de Almagro, ChileJune 8, 1909 · 159 km S of this epicenter
  5. 7.4Atacama, ChileApril 18, 1939 · 282 km S of this epicenter
  6. 7.187 km SSE of Antofagasta, ChileJuly 8, 1942 · 48 km NE of this epicenter
  7. 7.064 km NNE of Antofagasta, ChileNovember 20, 1928 · 177 km N of this epicenter
  8. 6.9178 km W of Taltal, ChileMay 24, 1913 · 219 km SW of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 24 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 13 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1859M7.6

    Chile

    5 Oct 1859 · 291 km away · intensity X

    10 deathsUnder $1 million damagetsunami

  2. 1946M7.9

    Northern

    2 Aug 1946 · 198 km away

    2 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  3. 1936M7.3

    Taltal

    13 Jul 1936 · 40 km away

    1 deathModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

  4. 1819M8.5

    Copiapo

    12 Apr 1819 · 279 km away · intensity X

    Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  5. 1819M8.0

    Copiapo

    4 Apr 1819 · 297 km away

    Severe damage ($5–24M)

  6. 1918M7.8

    Copiapo

    4 Dec 1918 · 158 km away

    Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

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