Reviewed by USGSGuatemala12y ago
M4.6 earthquake 50 km SW of Champerico, Guatemala
Tuesday, December 31, 2013, 10:22:05 UTC · 13.973°N, 92.251°W
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 50 km SW of Champerico, Guatemala on Tuesday, December 31, 2013, 10:22:05 UTC, at a depth of 47.6 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.6 on December 22, 2013.
- Magnitude
- 4.6
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 48 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
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
65 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Cocos and North American plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
48 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 4 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.4 on January 10, 2014. 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 645 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.726 km SSW of La Gomera, GuatemalaAugust 6, 1942 · 118 km E of this epicenter
- 7.433 km S of Champerico, GuatemalaNovember 7, 2012 · 38 km E of this epicenter
- 7.34 km SSW of Puerto Madero, MexicoDecember 14, 1935 · 82 km N of this epicenter
- 7.334 km SW of Puerto Madero, MexicoApril 29, 1970 · 68 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.2127 km SW of La Esperanza (El Zapotal), MexicoMarch 30, 1914 · 199 km W of this epicenter
- 7.224 km W of Puerto Madero, MexicoSeptember 10, 1993 · 93 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 37 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 5,799 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1917M6.0
Guatemala City
26 Dec 1917 · 191 km away · intensity IX
2,650 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1902M7.5
Quezaltenango, San Marcos
19 Apr 1902 · 135 km away
2,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1773
St. Jago
3 Jun 1773 · 181 km away
600 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1874M7.1
Antigua,Chimaltenango,Amatitlan
3 Sep 1874 · 177 km away · intensity VIII
300 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1773M7.5
Antigua
29 Jul 1773 · 181 km away · intensity VIII
100 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 2012M7.3
San Marcos, San Cristobal Cochu
7 Nov 2012 · 38 km away
48 deaths$210 million damagetsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.