Reviewed by USGS81y ago
M6.1 earthquake central Peru
Monday, September 30, 1946, 00:59:40 UTC · 13.314°S, 75.764°W
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck central Peru on Monday, September 30, 1946, 00:59:40 UTC, at a depth of 53.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.3 on August 25, 1942.
- Magnitude
- 6.1
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 53 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VI
- 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
21 kilotons of TNT
That is about the energy of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 45 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
153 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
53 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 20 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.221 km SE of Huacho, PeruMay 24, 1940 · 296 km NW of this epicenter
- 8.121 km NNE of Minas de Marcona, PeruAugust 24, 1942 · 208 km S of this epicenter
- 6.913 km SSW of San Juan, PeruOctober 3, 1916 · 229 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.691 km SSW of Santiago, PeruJune 25, 1930 · 184 km S of this epicenter
- 6.512 km S of Chiara, PeruJanuary 9, 1921 · 170 km E of this epicenter
- 6.512 km WNW of Cotaruse, PeruFebruary 28, 1920 · 290 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.518 km WSW of Oxapampa, PeruDecember 24, 1937 · 298 km N of this epicenter
- 6.3144 km W of Paracas, PeruApril 6, 1922 · 215 km SW 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 6,038 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1746M8.0
Lima, Callao
29 Oct 1746 · 214 km away · intensity XI
5,941 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1813
Ica
30 Mar 1813 · 96 km away · intensity VII
32 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1942M8.2
Ica, Nazca
24 Aug 1942 · 189 km away · intensity IX
30 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1828M8.3
Lima, Callao
30 Mar 1828 · 258 km away · intensity VII
30 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1865
Peru
8 Jan 1865 · 206 km away
5 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1739
Santa Catalina
24 Mar 1739 · 290 km away · intensity VII
Severe damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.