Reviewed by USGSCosta Rica77y ago
M5.7 earthquake 24 km W of Jacó, Costa Rica
Tuesday, October 17, 1950, 22:07:25 UTC · 9.607°N, 84.850°W
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck 24 km W of Jacó, Costa Rica on Tuesday, October 17, 1950, 22:07:25 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.5 on October 5, 1950.
- Magnitude
- 5.7
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 15 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- V
- Moderate (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
5 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/3 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 11 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
76 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Cocos and Panama 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 58 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.64 km WNW of Atenas, Costa RicaDecember 21, 1939 · 64 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.5Costa RicaOctober 5, 1950 · 100 km N of this epicenter
- 7.570 km WSW of Golfito, Costa RicaDecember 5, 1941 · 191 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.392 km SW of San Juan del Sur, NicaraguaDecember 30, 1907 · 215 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.353 km SSE of Quepos, Costa RicaDecember 20, 1904 · 114 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.3204 km WSW of Sámara, Costa RicaFebruary 27, 1916 · 273 km W of this epicenter
- 7.16 km WNW of Siquirres, Costa RicaApril 24, 1916 · 152 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 26 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 706 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1910M6.4
Cartago, San Jose
4 May 1910 · 103 km away
700 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1941M7.6
Costa Rica-Panama
5 Dec 1941 · 207 km away · intensity IV
6 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1854M7.3
Costa Rica-Panama
5 Aug 1854 · 238 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1925M6.7
Managua
5 Oct 1925 · 291 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)
- 1922M6.4
Nicaragua
16 Feb 1922 · 232 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)
- 1888
San Jose, Ala Juela, Heredia
30 Dec 1888 · 91 km away · intensity VIII
Severe damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.