Reviewed by USGSGuatemala13y ago
M4.6 earthquake 31 km SW of Nueva Concepción, Guatemala
Wednesday, June 12, 2013, 07:54:42 UTC · 14.028°N, 91.538°W
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 31 km SW of Nueva Concepción, Guatemala on Wednesday, June 12, 2013, 07:54:42 UTC, at a depth of 80.2 km (intermediate). USGS received 25 “Did You Feel It?” reports, with a maximum reported intensity of IV (light). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.7 on May 21, 2013.
- Magnitude
- 4.6
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 80 km
- Intermediate
- Felt reports
- 25
- Max intensity IV
- 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
120 tons of TNT
That is about 1/126 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 4 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
101 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Cocos and North American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: intermediate
80 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
Reports sent by people to USGS, grouped by place (most reports first). Intensity uses the Modified Mercalli scale (I–X): what people felt, not the magnitude.
| Place | Intensity | Reports | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antigua Guatemala, Sacatepéquez, Guatemala | III · Weak | 5 | 131 km |
| Guatemala, Guatemala, Guatemala | II · Weak | 4 | 149 km |
| Mixco, Guatemala, Guatemala | III · Weak | 3 | 145 km |
| Santa Catarina Pinula, Guatemala, Guatemala | IV · Light | 1 | 150 km |
| San Pablo la Laguna, Sololá, Guatemala | III · Weak | 1 | 114 km |
| San Bartolomé Milpas Altas, Sacatepéquez, Guatemala | III · Weak | 1 | 138 km |
| Chimaltenango, Chimaltenango, Guatemala | II · Weak | 1 | 131 km |
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 has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 648 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 · 273 km E of this epicenter
- 7.726 km SSW of La Gomera, GuatemalaAugust 6, 1942 · 45 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.57 km N of Los Amates, GuatemalaFebruary 4, 1976 · 299 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.433 km S of Champerico, GuatemalaNovember 7, 2012 · 39 km W of this epicenter
- 7.34 km SSW of Puerto Madero, MexicoDecember 14, 1935 · 122 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.334 km SW of Puerto Madero, MexicoApril 29, 1970 · 126 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 59 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 · 299 km away · intensity IX
23,000 deaths$2.1 billion damagetsunami
- 1917M6.0
Guatemala City
26 Dec 1917 · 119 km away · intensity IX
2,650 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1902M7.5
Quezaltenango, San Marcos
19 Apr 1902 · 58 km away
2,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1986M5.4
San Salvador
10 Oct 1986 · 262 km away
1,100 deaths$1.5 billion damage
- 1854
San Salvador
14 Apr 1854 · 254 km away
1,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1873
Santa Tomas, San Vicente
4 Mar 1873 · 264 km away
800 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.