Reviewed by USGSPeru24d ago
M4.3 earthquake 14 km SSW of Quicacha, Peru
Wednesday, September 2, 2026, 21:24:59 UTC · 15.750°S, 73.827°W
A magnitude 4.3 earthquake struck 14 km SSW of Quicacha, Peru on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, 21:24:59 UTC, at a depth of 57.6 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 4.3
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 58 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
43 tons of TNT
That is about 1/354 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 11 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
145 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and Altiplano plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
58 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 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km since this event; the largest was M4.5 on September 12, 2026. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 596 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 · 61 km S of this epicenter
- 8.121 km NNE of Minas de Marcona, PeruAugust 24, 1942 · 151 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.737 km SSW of Atico, PeruAugust 6, 1913 · 88 km S of this epicenter
- 7.760 km SW of Changuillo, PeruNovember 12, 1996 · 215 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.651 km SW of Punta de Bombón, PeruJuly 7, 2001 · 273 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.235 km N of El Cardo, PeruOctober 11, 1922 · 134 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.210 km WSW of Atiquipa, PeruJune 28, 2024 · 68 km W of this epicenter
- 7.212 km NNE of Cono Norte, PeruFebruary 26, 1914 · 248 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 50 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 1,332 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1784M8.0
Arequipa,Camana,Moquegua,Tambo
13 May 1784 · 212 km away · intensity X
383 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1821
Camana, Ocona, Caraveli
10 Jul 1821 · 100 km away · intensity VIII
162 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1707M5.8
Cuzco
17 Sep 1707 · 277 km away · intensity X
160 deaths
- 1913M6.3
Amyaraes, Abancay, Casaya, Soraya
4 Nov 1913 · 199 km away · intensity X
150 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 2001M8.4
Arequipa, Moquegua, Tacna, Ayacucho
23 Jun 2001 · 61 km away · intensity VIII
103 deaths$200 million damagetsunami
- 1991M4.7
Maca, Chivay, Yanque
23 Jul 1991 · 241 km away · intensity V
92 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.