Reviewed by USGSChile97y ago
M6.5 earthquake 17 km NNE of Hacienda La Calera, Chile
Friday, October 17, 1930, 08:46:38 UTC · 32.632°S, 71.177°W
A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck 17 km NNE of Hacienda La Calera, Chile on Friday, October 17, 1930, 08:46:38 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.7 on December 1, 1928.
- Magnitude
- 6.5
- 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
71 kilotons of TNT
That is about 5 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 150 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
152 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
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:
- 8.2The 1906 Valparaiso, Chile EarthquakeAugust 17, 1906 · 33 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.730 km NNE of Constitución, ChileDecember 1, 1928 · 291 km S of this epicenter
- 6.972 km WNW of Calingasta, ArgentinaJuly 27, 1917 · 211 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.957 km W of Ovalle, ChileFebruary 15, 1917 · 242 km N of this epicenter
- 6.8121 km WSW of Coquimbo, ChileNovember 17, 1922 · 275 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.726 km S of Nueve de Julio, ArgentinaDecember 17, 1920 · 272 km E of this epicenter
- 6.7210 km WNW of Valparaíso, ChileDecember 11, 1904 · 240 km W of this epicenter
- 6.725 km SE of Monte Patria, ChileNovember 14, 1927 · 205 km N of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 29 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 18,761 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1861
Mendoza, San Luiz
20 Mar 1861 · 223 km away · intensity IX
14,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1906M8.2
South Central
17 Aug 1906 · 87 km away · intensity XI
4,000 deaths$100 million damagetsunami
- 1920M6.7
Mendoza
17 Dec 1920 · 272 km away · intensity VIII
400 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1928M7.6
Talca, Chillan, Santiago, San Fernando
1 Dec 1928 · 274 km away · intensity IX
279 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1822M8.5
Valparaiso, Quillota, Concon, Aconcagua
20 Nov 1822 · 87 km away · intensity XI
72 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1730M9.1
Valparaiso
8 Jul 1730 · 34 km away · intensity XI
5 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.