QuakeScout
Magnitude6.1

Reviewed by USGSBolivia93y ago

M6.1 earthquake 93 km WSW of Colchani, Bolivia

Sunday, December 23, 1934, 09:52:20 UTC · 20.610°S, 67.772°W

A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck 93 km WSW of Colchani, Bolivia on Sunday, December 23, 1934, 09:52:20 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.5 on December 4, 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

21 kilotons of TNT

That is about the energy of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 43 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

98 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

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 7 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 · 155 km N of this epicenter
  2. 7.334 km S of Iquique, ChileFebruary 23, 1933 · 252 km W of this epicenter
  3. 7.278 km SW of Colchani, BoliviaOctober 4, 1910 · 29 km SE of this epicenter
  4. 7.069 km NW of Camargo, BoliviaMay 17, 1909 · 213 km E of this epicenter
  5. 6.5105 km SSE of Arica, ChileDecember 4, 1934 · 254 km NW of this epicenter
  6. 6.492 km N of Iquique, ChileAugust 17, 1918 · 280 km NW of this epicenter
  7. 5.3162 km W of Colchani, BoliviaNovember 2, 1927 · 74 km W of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 22 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,385 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1877M8.3

    Off North Coast

    10 May 1877 · 300 km away · intensity XI

    2,385 deaths$2 million damagetsunami

  2. 1878M7.9

    Tarapaca

    23 Jan 1878 · 278 km away · intensity VIII

    Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  3. 1871M7.3

    Chile

    5 Oct 1871 · 257 km away · intensity X

    Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  4. 1934M6.9

    Iquique, Pisagua, Sapiga, Negrero

    4 Dec 1934 · 219 km away

    Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

  5. 1869M7.5

    Iquique, Pica; Peru: Tacna

    24 Aug 1869 · 280 km away · intensity VIII

    Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami

  6. 1915M7.6

    S

    6 Jun 1915 · 247 km away

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

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