Reviewed by USGSColombia47y ago
M5.0 earthquake 59 km NW of Mosquera, Colombia
Monday, January 7, 1980, 00:33:35 UTC · 2.939°N, 78.774°W
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 59 km NW of Mosquera, Colombia on Monday, January 7, 1980, 00:33:35 UTC, at a depth of 19.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.5 on December 31, 1979.
- Magnitude
- 5.0
- Moderate · mb
- Depth
- 19 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: 75 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
477 tons of TNT
That is about 1/32 of the Hiroshima bomb. Each whole step in magnitude is about 32 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
22 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and North Andes plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
19 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 75 km
USGS lists 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.6 on January 17, 1980. 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 63 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.81906 Ecuador-Colombia EarthquakeJanuary 31, 1906 · 230 km S of this epicenter
- 7.756 km NW of Valdez, EcuadorDecember 12, 1979 · 163 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.6near the coast of EcuadorJanuary 19, 1958 · 229 km S of this epicenter
- 6.951 km NW of Valdez, EcuadorFebruary 1, 1958 · 168 km S of this epicenter
- 6.824 km NNE of Esmeraldas, EcuadorJanuary 19, 1958 · 216 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.830 km SE of Esmeraldas, EcuadorApril 14, 1958 · 249 km S of this epicenter
- 6.813 km N of Muisne, EcuadorJune 30, 1916 · 281 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.725 km SW of Esmeraldas, EcuadorApril 9, 1976 · 266 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 22 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 72,536 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1868M7.7
Guayaquil,Ibarra; Colombia: San Pablo
16 Aug 1868 · 300 km away · intensity X
70,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1906M8.8
Off Coast
31 Jan 1906 · 230 km away · intensity IX
1,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1979M8.1
Off Shore, Pacific Ocean
12 Dec 1979 · 164 km away · intensity IX
600 deaths$8 million damagetsunami
- 1923M6.2
Ipiales
14 Dec 1923 · 255 km away · intensity IX
300 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1827M7.0
Bogota, Neiva, Popayan, Pasto, Huila
16 Nov 1827 · 293 km away · intensity XI
250 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1936M5.6
Colombia
9 Jan 1936 · 243 km away · intensity VII
250 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.