Reviewed by USGSPeru83y ago
M6.6 earthquake 52 km SSE of Atico, Peru
Monday, August 7, 1944, 03:25:27 UTC · 16.666°S, 73.485°W
A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck 52 km SSE of Atico, Peru on Monday, August 7, 1944, 03:25:27 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M8.1 on August 24, 1942.
- Magnitude
- 6.6
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 35 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
133 kilotons of TNT
That is about 9 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 279 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
91 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and Altiplano plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
35 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 19 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.121 km NNE of Minas de Marcona, PeruAugust 24, 1942 · 245 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.737 km SSW of Atico, PeruAugust 6, 1913 · 31 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.235 km N of El Cardo, PeruOctober 11, 1922 · 93 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.212 km NNE of Cono Norte, PeruFebruary 26, 1914 · 212 km E of this epicenter
- 6.913 km SSW of San Juan, PeruOctober 3, 1916 · 227 km N of this epicenter
- 6.882 km SW of Islay (Matarani), PeruJanuary 6, 1922 · 132 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.7165 km SSW of Atiquipa, PeruJuly 28, 1913 · 169 km W of this epicenter
- 6.7103 km SSW of Atico, PeruSeptember 13, 1919 · 73 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 19 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 729 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1784M8.0
Arequipa,Camana,Moquegua,Tambo
13 May 1784 · 159 km away · intensity X
383 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1821
Camana, Ocona, Caraveli
10 Jul 1821 · 83 km away · intensity VIII
162 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1913M6.3
Amyaraes, Abancay, Casaya, Soraya
4 Nov 1913 · 281 km away · intensity X
150 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1914
Pararca,Paysa,Colta,Oyala
2 Dec 1914 · 166 km away · intensity X
34 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1913M7.9
Caraveli, Chuquibamba, Ocona, Atico
6 Aug 1913 · 66 km away · intensity X
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1739
Santa Catalina
24 Mar 1739 · 287 km away · intensity VII
Severe damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.