Reviewed by USGSChile68y ago
M7.1 earthquake 136 km E of Iquique, Chile
Sunday, June 14, 1959, 00:12:06 UTC · 20.407°S, 68.862°W
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck 136 km E of Iquique, Chile on Sunday, June 14, 1959, 00:12:06 UTC, at a depth of 109.2 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.7 on November 29, 1957.
- Magnitude
- 7.1
- Major · mw
- Depth
- 109 km
- Intermediate
- 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
674 kilotons of TNT
That is about 45 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 1,413 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
121 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: intermediate
109 km
Intermediate-depth earthquakes usually break inside a plate that is sinking into the mantle. Shaking spreads over a wide area but is gentler at the epicenter than a shallow quake of the same size.
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 28 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.751 km W of Atocha, BoliviaNovember 29, 1957 · 232 km E of this epicenter
- 7.3136 km WSW of Challapata, BoliviaJune 6, 1915 · 157 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.334 km S of Iquique, ChileFebruary 23, 1933 · 139 km W of this epicenter
- 7.2Near the coast of Tarapaca, ChileOctober 4, 1940 · 170 km W of this epicenter
- 7.278 km SW of Colchani, BoliviaOctober 4, 1910 · 143 km E of this epicenter
- 6.9119 km W of Iquique, ChileSeptember 15, 1911 · 255 km W of this epicenter
- 6.925 km ENE of Arica, ChileAugust 30, 1906 · 262 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.987 km NNW of Iquique, ChileDecember 26, 1906 · 206 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 37 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,389 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1877M8.3
Off North Coast
10 May 1877 · 209 km away · intensity XI
2,385 deaths$2 million damagetsunami
- 1953M7.4
Northern
7 Dec 1953 · 189 km away
3 deaths$7 million damage
- 1959M7.5
Bolivia-Northern Chile
14 Jun 1959 · 90 km away
1 deathLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1878M7.9
Tarapaca
23 Jan 1878 · 163 km away · intensity VIII
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1871M7.3
Chile
5 Oct 1871 · 141 km away · intensity X
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1934M6.9
Iquique, Pisagua, Sapiga, Negrero
4 Dec 1934 · 121 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.