M7.3 earthquake 136 km WSW of Challapata, Bolivia

Sunday, June 6, 1915, 21:29:33 UTC · 19.239°S, 68.014°W

A magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck 136 km WSW of Challapata, Bolivia on Sunday, June 6, 1915, 21:29:33 UTC, at a depth of 160.0 km (intermediate). No earthquake of this size or larger appears within 300 km in the USGS catalog since 1900.

Magnitude: 7.3; Major · mB
Depth: 160 km; Intermediate
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

1.3 megatons of TNT

That is about 89 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 2,818 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

250 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Altiplano and South American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.

Depth: intermediate

160 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 200 km

USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 200 km in the 30 days after this event.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 5 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 23 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 15 recorded deaths. The most severe:

1909
Cochabamba
23 Jul 1909 · 251 km away
15 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
1878M7.9
Tarapaca
23 Jan 1878 · 255 km away · intensity VIII
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
1871M7.3
Chile
5 Oct 1871 · 253 km away · intensity X
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
1705
Chile: Arica
26 Nov 1705 · 241 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
1909
Oruro
5 Nov 1909 · 174 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
1869M7.5
Iquique, Pica; Peru: Tacna
24 Aug 1869 · 236 km away · intensity VIII
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami

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

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