Reviewed by USGSArgentina83y ago
M6.9 earthquake 4 km ESE of Chimbas, Argentina
Saturday, January 15, 1944, 23:49:31 UTC · 31.496°S, 68.491°W
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck 4 km ESE of Chimbas, Argentina on Saturday, January 15, 1944, 23:49:31 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M8.1 on April 6, 1943.
- Magnitude
- 6.9
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 15 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
362 kilotons of TNT
That is about 24 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 759 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
396 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and South American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
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 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 11 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.2The 1906 Valparaiso, Chile EarthquakeAugust 17, 1906 · 292 km W of this epicenter
- 8.145 km NNW of Illapel, ChileApril 6, 1943 · 274 km W of this epicenter
- 6.972 km WNW of Calingasta, ArgentinaJuly 27, 1917 · 160 km W of this epicenter
- 6.726 km S of Nueve de Julio, ArgentinaDecember 17, 1920 · 46 km S of this epicenter
- 6.725 km SE of Monte Patria, ChileNovember 14, 1927 · 227 km W of this epicenter
- 6.631 km NNW of La Ligua, ChileNovember 29, 1932 · 279 km W of this epicenter
- 6.527 km SE of Caucete, ArgentinaJuly 3, 1941 · 54 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.517 km NNE of Hacienda La Calera, ChileOctober 17, 1930 · 283 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 15 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 24,405 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1861
Mendoza, San Luiz
20 Mar 1861 · 148 km away · intensity IX
14,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1944M6.9
San Juan Province
15 Jan 1944 · 0 km away · intensity IX
10,000 deaths$100 million damage
- 1920M6.7
Mendoza
17 Dec 1920 · 46 km away · intensity VIII
400 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1903M6.0
Mendoza
12 Aug 1903 · 88 km away · intensity VIII
3 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1880M7.7
Illapel
15 Aug 1880 · 255 km away · intensity X
2 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1894M7.5
La Rioja, San Juan, Mendoza
27 Oct 1894 · 56 km away · intensity IX
Severe damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.