Reviewed by USGSMexico91y ago
M6.1 earthquake 28 km NE of Melitón Albáñez Domínguez, Mexico
Friday, July 31, 1936, 17:41:12 UTC · 23.821°N, 110.200°W
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck 28 km NE of Melitón Albáñez Domínguez, Mexico on Friday, July 31, 1936, 17:41:12 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.1 on October 29, 1934.
- Magnitude
- 6.1
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 15 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
23 kilotons of TNT
That is about 2 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 48 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
113 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the North American and Pacific 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 14 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.361 km NNW of La Paz, MexicoApril 10, 1906 · 99 km N of this epicenter
- 7.0111 km SSW of Altata, MexicoJune 12, 1922 · 173 km E of this epicenter
- 6.879 km SSW of Etchoropo, MexicoJuly 12, 1932 · 260 km N of this epicenter
- 6.880 km SSW of El Huitusi, MexicoAugust 28, 1923 · 159 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.340 km SW of Etchoropo, MexicoMarch 6, 1921 · 299 km N of this epicenter
- 6.2176 km SE of La Playa, MexicoMarch 14, 1932 · 277 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.163 km SSW of El Huitusi, MexicoSeptember 27, 1929 · 174 km NE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 1 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1810M7.4
Baja California: Loreto
27 Aug 1810 · 269 km away · intensity IX
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.