Reviewed by USGSArgentina68y ago
M6.6 earthquake 47 km ENE of Humahuaca, Argentina
Tuesday, May 12, 1959, 09:46:59 UTC · 23.070°S, 64.907°W
A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck 47 km ENE of Humahuaca, Argentina on Tuesday, May 12, 1959, 09:46:59 UTC, at a depth of 25.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.9 on August 25, 1948.
- Magnitude
- 6.6
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 25 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
120 kilotons of TNT
That is about 8 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 251 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
180 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Altiplano and South American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
25 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 100 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 3 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 11 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 32 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1930M6.1
La Poma
24 Dec 1930 · 232 km away · intensity VIII
31 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1950M8.0
Chile-Argentina
9 Dec 1950 · 269 km away · intensity VII
1 death
- 1844M6.5
Salta, Jujuy, Tucuman
19 Oct 1844 · 242 km away · intensity VII
Severe damage ($5–24M)
- 1899M6.9
Southern; Argentina: Salta
23 Mar 1899 · 176 km away · intensity X
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1948M6.9
Salta
25 Aug 1948 · 170 km away · intensity IX
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1959M6.6
Salta
12 May 1959 · 0 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.