Reviewed by USGSMexico76y ago
M6.0 earthquake 282 km SW of Barra de Navidad, Mexico
Wednesday, January 3, 1951, 12:21:25 UTC · 17.106°N, 106.193°W
A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck 282 km SW of Barra de Navidad, Mexico on Wednesday, January 3, 1951, 12:21:25 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.2 on October 21, 1950.
- Magnitude
- 6.0
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 15 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- —
- No ShakeMap
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
13 kilotons of TNT
That is about the energy of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 27 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
87 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Cocos and Pacific plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
15 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 75 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 45 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.0102 km SW of Barra de Navidad, MexicoNovember 30, 1934 · 181 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.0Revilla Gigedo Islands regionDecember 17, 1905 · 284 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.9211 km SW of José María Morelos, MexicoNovember 16, 1925 · 161 km N of this epicenter
- 6.820 km W of La Placita de Morelos, MexicoJune 29, 1935 · 299 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.8256 km SW of La Cruz de Loreto, MexicoJanuary 2, 1931 · 224 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.851 km SSW of Cuyutlán, MexicoDecember 7, 1932 · 257 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.753 km SSW of El Colomo, MexicoDecember 13, 1933 · 249 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.6222 km WSW of La Cruz de Loreto, MexicoSeptember 29, 1950 · 233 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 3 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1934M7.0
Jalisco
30 Nov 1934 · 171 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1925M7.0
S. Mexico
16 Nov 1925 · 177 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1933M4.0
Colima
20 Feb 1933 · 227 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.