Reviewed by USGSPeru2y ago
M4.5 earthquake 51 km WSW of Atiquipa, Peru
Tuesday, July 9, 2024, 00:10:16 UTC · 15.964°S, 74.816°W
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 51 km WSW of Atiquipa, Peru on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, 00:10:16 UTC, at a depth of 26.3 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.4 on July 8, 2024.
- Magnitude
- 4.5
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 26 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
85 tons of TNT
That is about 1/178 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 6 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
63 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and Altiplano plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
26 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 50 km
USGS lists 5 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.8 on July 12, 2024. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 4.376 km SW of Atiquipa, Peru2y ago · 33 km S of this epicenter
- 4.632 km WSW of Atiquipa, Peru2y ago · 19 km E of this epicenter
- 4.847 km WSW of Atiquipa, Peru2y ago · 5 km E of this epicenter
- 5.824 km SW of Acarí, Peru2y ago · 46 km N of this epicenter
- 4.253 km SW of Atiquipa, Peru2y ago · 23 km SE of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 490 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.46 km SSW of Atico, PeruJune 23, 2001 · 130 km E of this epicenter
- 8.121 km NNE of Minas de Marcona, PeruAugust 24, 1942 · 105 km N of this epicenter
- 7.737 km SSW of Atico, PeruAugust 6, 1913 · 131 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.760 km SW of Changuillo, PeruNovember 12, 1996 · 142 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.235 km N of El Cardo, PeruOctober 11, 1922 · 228 km E of this epicenter
- 7.210 km WSW of Atiquipa, PeruJune 28, 2024 · 42 km E of this epicenter
- 7.121 km SSE of Nazca, PeruJanuary 15, 1960 · 106 km N of this epicenter
- 7.137 km W of Atiquipa, PeruJanuary 14, 2018 · 25 km NE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 38 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 667 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1821
Camana, Ocona, Caraveli
10 Jul 1821 · 198 km away · intensity VIII
162 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1913M6.3
Amyaraes, Abancay, Casaya, Soraya
4 Nov 1913 · 284 km away · intensity X
150 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 2001M8.4
Arequipa, Moquegua, Tacna, Ayacucho
23 Jun 2001 · 130 km away · intensity VIII
103 deaths$200 million damagetsunami
- 1960M7.8
Arequipa,Chuquibamba,Caraveli,Cotahuasi
13 Jan 1960 · 222 km away · intensity X
63 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1914
Pararca,Paysa,Colta,Oyala
2 Dec 1914 · 193 km away · intensity X
34 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1813
Ica
30 Mar 1813 · 217 km away · intensity VII
32 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.