Reviewed by USGSChile59y ago
M6.7 earthquake 136 km NNE of Calama, Chile
Wednesday, December 27, 1967, 09:17:54 UTC · 21.362°S, 68.311°W
A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck 136 km NNE of Calama, Chile on Wednesday, December 27, 1967, 09:17:54 UTC, at a depth of 114.7 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.3 on December 21, 1967.
- Magnitude
- 6.7
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 115 km
- Intermediate
- 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
181 kilotons of TNT
That is about 12 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 380 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
15 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: intermediate
115 km
Intermediate-depth earthquakes usually break inside a plate that is sinking into the mantle. Shaking spreads over a wide area but is gentler at the epicenter than a shallow quake of the same size.
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 45 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.2121 km SSE of San Pedro de Atacama, ChileDecember 9, 1950 · 294 km S of this epicenter
- 7.751 km W of Atocha, BoliviaNovember 29, 1957 · 172 km E of this epicenter
- 7.3136 km WSW of Challapata, BoliviaJune 6, 1915 · 238 km N of this epicenter
- 7.334 km NE of Tocopilla, ChileDecember 21, 1967 · 179 km W of this epicenter
- 7.334 km S of Iquique, ChileFebruary 23, 1933 · 217 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.2Near the coast of Tarapaca, ChileOctober 4, 1940 · 268 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.278 km SW of Colchani, BoliviaOctober 4, 1910 · 107 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.1136 km E of Iquique, ChileJune 14, 1959 · 121 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 31 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,391 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1877M8.3
Off North Coast
10 May 1877 · 227 km away · intensity XI
2,385 deaths$2 million damagetsunami
- 1953M7.4
Northern
7 Dec 1953 · 91 km away
3 deaths$7 million damage
- 1967M7.5
Northern
21 Dec 1967 · 129 km away
1 deathModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1959M7.5
Bolivia-Northern Chile
14 Jun 1959 · 115 km away
1 deathLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1950M8.0
Chile-Argentina
9 Dec 1950 · 252 km away · intensity VII
1 death
- 1878M7.9
Tarapaca
23 Jan 1878 · 265 km away · intensity VIII
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.