Reviewed by USGSGuatemala13y ago
M4.0 earthquake 26 km SW of Nueva Concepción, Guatemala
Monday, September 2, 2013, 17:55:24 UTC · 14.048°N, 91.485°W
A magnitude 4.0 earthquake struck 26 km SW of Nueva Concepción, Guatemala on Monday, September 2, 2013, 17:55:24 UTC, at a depth of 51.3 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 4.0
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 51 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
15 tons of TNT
That is about 1/998 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 32 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
101 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Caribbean and North American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
51 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 6 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.3 on September 15, 2013. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 4.160 km SW of Nueva Concepción, Guatemala13y ago · 37 km SW of this epicenter
- 4.222 km SSE of Champerico, Guatemala13y ago · 40 km W of this epicenter
- 4.312 km ENE of Champerico, Guatemala13y ago · 46 km NW of this epicenter
- 4.113 km S of Champerico, Guatemala13y ago · 47 km W of this epicenter
- 4.315 km SSE of Champerico, Guatemala13y ago · 41 km W of this epicenter
- 4.06 km SE of Champerico, Guatemala13y ago · 48 km NW of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 657 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.712 km NW of Chalatenango, El SalvadorSeptember 7, 1915 · 267 km E of this epicenter
- 7.726 km SSW of La Gomera, GuatemalaAugust 6, 1942 · 41 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.57 km N of Los Amates, GuatemalaFebruary 4, 1976 · 293 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.433 km S of Champerico, GuatemalaNovember 7, 2012 · 45 km W of this epicenter
- 7.34 km SSW of Puerto Madero, MexicoDecember 14, 1935 · 125 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.334 km SW of Puerto Madero, MexicoApril 29, 1970 · 130 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 60 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 32,728 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1976M7.5
Chimaltenango, Guatemala City
4 Feb 1976 · 293 km away · intensity IX
23,000 deaths$2.1 billion damagetsunami
- 1917M6.0
Guatemala City
26 Dec 1917 · 113 km away · intensity IX
2,650 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1902M7.5
Quezaltenango, San Marcos
19 Apr 1902 · 53 km away
2,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1986M5.4
San Salvador
10 Oct 1986 · 257 km away
1,100 deaths$1.5 billion damage
- 1854
San Salvador
14 Apr 1854 · 248 km away
1,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1873
Santa Tomas, San Vicente
4 Mar 1873 · 258 km away
800 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.