Reviewed by USGSChile102y ago
M6.3 earthquake 7 km SSE of Taltal, Chile
Friday, May 15, 1925, 11:57:05 UTC · 25.468°S, 70.445°W
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck 7 km SSE of Taltal, Chile on Friday, May 15, 1925, 11:57:05 UTC, at a depth of 30.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.4 on January 5, 1919.
- Magnitude
- 6.3
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 30 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VI
- Strong (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
44 kilotons of TNT
That is about 3 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 92 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
113 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
30 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 8 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.060 km W of Diego de Almagro, ChileDecember 4, 1918 · 112 km S of this epicenter
- 7.550 km WNW of Diego de Almagro, ChileJune 8, 1909 · 76 km S of this epicenter
- 6.9178 km W of Taltal, ChileMay 24, 1913 · 181 km W of this epicenter
- 6.936 km W of Copiapó, ChileSeptember 6, 1910 · 219 km S of this epicenter
- 6.697 km SW of Antofagasta, ChileAugust 5, 1907 · 133 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.472 km WNW of Diego de Almagro, ChileJanuary 5, 1919 · 68 km S of this epicenter
- 6.485 km SW of Antofagasta de la Sierra, ArgentinaDecember 4, 1918 · 290 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.251 km WNW of Taltal, ChileAugust 17, 1923 · 59 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 14 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 10 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1859M7.6
Chile
5 Oct 1859 · 209 km away · intensity X
10 deathsUnder $1 million damagetsunami
- 1819M8.5
Copiapo
12 Apr 1819 · 200 km away · intensity X
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1819M8.0
Copiapo
4 Apr 1819 · 215 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)
- 1918M7.8
Copiapo
4 Dec 1918 · 81 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1819M8.0
Copiapo
3 Apr 1819 · 215 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1796M7.7
Copiapo, Vallenar, Huasco, Coquimbo
30 Mar 1796 · 209 km away · intensity XI
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.