Reviewed by USGSMexico31y ago
M3.9 earthquake 6 km NNW of Cihuatlán, Mexico
Sunday, January 7, 1996, 10:02:39 UTC · 19.296°N, 104.587°W
A magnitude 3.9 earthquake struck 6 km NNW of Cihuatlán, Mexico on Sunday, January 7, 1996, 10:02:39 UTC, at a depth of 100.0 km (intermediate).
- Magnitude
- 3.9
- Minor · mb
- Depth
- 100 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
11 tons of TNT
That is about 1/1,410 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 45 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
89 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: intermediate
100 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 50 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.4 on January 22, 1996. 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 167 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.11932 Jalisco, Mexico EarthquakeJune 3, 1932 · 88 km NE of this epicenter
- 8.01995 Colima-Jalisco, Mexico EarthquakeOctober 9, 1995 · 48 km SE of this epicenter
- 8.01985 Michoacan, Mexico EarthquakeSeptember 19, 1985 · 249 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.87 km E of Los Tepames, MexicoJune 18, 1932 · 111 km E of this epicenter
- 7.712 km NNE of La Central, MexicoJune 22, 1932 · 22 km E of this epicenter
- 7.621 km ESE of Coalcomán de Vázquez Pallares, MexicoApril 15, 1941 · 181 km E of this epicenter
- 7.619 km W of Arteaga, MexicoJune 7, 1911 · 246 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.535 km SW of Aguililla, MexicoJanuary 30, 1973 · 190 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 33 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 14,251 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1985M8.1
Michoacan: Mexico City
19 Sep 1985 · 249 km away · intensity IX
9,500 deaths$4.0 billion damagetsunami
- 1806M7.5
Jalisco,Oaxaca,Michoacan
25 Mar 1806 · 94 km away · intensity VIII
2,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1818M8.2
Morelos-Guerrero,Mexico City,Guadalajara
31 May 1818 · 71 km away · intensity X
2,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1932M8.1
Near Coast Of Jalisco
3 Jun 1932 · 79 km away · intensity X
400 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1941M7.6
Michoacan, Colima, Jalisco
15 Apr 1941 · 181 km away · intensity VII
84 deaths$2 million damagetsunami
- 1932M7.7
Central
22 Jun 1932 · 22 km away
75 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.