Reviewed by USGSArgentina39y ago
M6.7 earthquake 88 km WNW of El Aguilar, Argentina
Tuesday, September 1, 1987, 04:26:07 UTC · 23.052°S, 66.529°W
A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck 88 km WNW of El Aguilar, Argentina on Tuesday, September 1, 1987, 04:26:07 UTC, at a depth of 199.0 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.0 on April 1, 1987.
- Magnitude
- 6.7
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 199 km
- Intermediate
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- 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
169 kilotons of TNT
That is about 11 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 355 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
172 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Altiplano and South American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: intermediate
199 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
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 100 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 237 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.2121 km SSE of San Pedro de Atacama, ChileDecember 9, 1950 · 175 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.751 km W of Atocha, BoliviaNovember 29, 1957 · 235 km N of this epicenter
- 7.278 km SW of Colchani, BoliviaOctober 4, 1910 · 278 km N of this epicenter
- 7.052 km W of Abra Pampa, ArgentinaApril 1, 1987 · 46 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.930 km SSE of Santa Clara, ArgentinaAugust 25, 1948 · 264 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.999 km WNW of San Antonio de los Cobres, ArgentinaFebruary 21, 1971 · 105 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.840 km SE of San Pedro de Atacama, ChileAugust 3, 1962 · 142 km W of this epicenter
- 6.7136 km NNE of Calama, ChileDecember 27, 1967 · 263 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 15 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 35 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1930M6.1
La Poma
24 Dec 1930 · 254 km away · intensity VIII
31 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1953M7.4
Northern
7 Dec 1953 · 247 km away
3 deaths$7 million damage
- 1950M8.0
Chile-Argentina
9 Dec 1950 · 111 km away · intensity VII
1 death
- 1844M6.5
Salta, Jujuy, Tucuman
19 Oct 1844 · 223 km away · intensity VII
Severe damage ($5–24M)
- 1948M6.9
Salta
25 Aug 1948 · 264 km away · intensity IX
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1959M6.6
Salta
12 May 1959 · 166 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.