Reviewed by USGSMexico41y ago
M3.6 earthquake 24 km SSW of Palos Blancos, Mexico
Thursday, October 10, 1985, 04:56:38 UTC · 17.344°N, 101.386°W
A magnitude 3.6 earthquake struck 24 km SSW of Palos Blancos, Mexico on Thursday, October 10, 1985, 04:56:38 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 3.6
- Minor · mb
- Depth
- 10 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
4 tons of TNT
That is about 1/3,975 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 126 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
46 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
10 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 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.2 on November 3, 1985. 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 137 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.01985 Michoacan, Mexico EarthquakeSeptember 19, 1985 · 154 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.87 km E of Los Tepames, MexicoJune 18, 1932 · 300 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.621 km ESE of Coalcomán de Vázquez Pallares, MexicoApril 15, 1941 · 225 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.68 km ENE of Apantla, MexicoJuly 28, 1957 · 246 km E of this epicenter
- 7.619 km W of Arteaga, MexicoJune 7, 1911 · 161 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.612 km SSE of Vallecitos de Zaragoza, MexicoMarch 14, 1979 · 53 km N of this epicenter
- 7.67 km N of Pantla, MexicoSeptember 21, 1985 · 58 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.525 km S of Tetitlán, MexicoDecember 16, 1911 · 89 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 49 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 10,037 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1985M8.1
Michoacan: Mexico City
19 Sep 1985 · 154 km away · intensity IX
9,500 deaths$4.0 billion damagetsunami
- 1912M6.7
Central, Acambay, Tixmadeje
19 Nov 1912 · 293 km away
202 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1941M7.6
Michoacan, Colima, Jalisco
15 Apr 1941 · 225 km away · intensity VII
84 deaths$2 million damagetsunami
- 1964M7.3
Guerrero
6 Jul 1964 · 121 km away
78 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1957M7.9
Acapulco,Mexico City
28 Jul 1957 · 261 km away · intensity VII
65 deaths$25 million damagetsunami
- 1973M7.5
S, Farias, Tecoman
30 Jan 1973 · 212 km away
56 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.