QuakeScout
Magnitude5.7

Reviewed by USGSChile87y ago

M5.7 earthquake 101 km S of Iquique, Chile

Sunday, October 27, 1940, 10:36:16 UTC · 21.117°S, 69.984°W

A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck 101 km S of Iquique, Chile on Sunday, October 27, 1940, 10:36:16 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.3 on October 6, 1940.

Magnitude
5.7
Moderate · 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

6 kilotons of TNT

That is about 1/3 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 12 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

42 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Altiplano and South American 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 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 20 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 7.3136 km WSW of Challapata, BoliviaJune 6, 1915 · 293 km NE of this epicenter
  2. 7.334 km S of Iquique, ChileFebruary 23, 1933 · 70 km N of this epicenter
  3. 7.2Near the coast of Tarapaca, ChileOctober 4, 1940 · 135 km N of this epicenter
  4. 7.278 km SW of Colchani, BoliviaOctober 4, 1910 · 258 km E of this epicenter
  5. 7.064 km NNE of Antofagasta, ChileNovember 20, 1928 · 227 km S of this epicenter
  6. 6.9119 km W of Iquique, ChileSeptember 15, 1911 · 171 km NW of this epicenter
  7. 6.9181 km W of Iquique, ChileAugust 25, 1916 · 225 km NW of this epicenter
  8. 6.987 km NNW of Iquique, ChileDecember 26, 1906 · 186 km N of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 35 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 27,385 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1868M8.5

    Arica

    13 Aug 1868 · 299 km away · intensity XI

    25,000 deaths$300 million damagetsunami

  2. 1877M8.3

    Off North Coast

    10 May 1877 · 68 km away · intensity XI

    2,385 deaths$2 million damagetsunami

  3. 1878M7.9

    Tarapaca

    23 Jan 1878 · 138 km away · intensity VIII

    Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  4. 1871M7.3

    Chile

    5 Oct 1871 · 104 km away · intensity X

    Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  5. 1934M6.9

    Iquique, Pisagua, Sapiga, Negrero

    4 Dec 1934 · 187 km away

    Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

  6. 1705

    Chile: Arica

    26 Nov 1705 · 281 km away

    Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

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