Reviewed by USGSArgentina31y ago
M4.8 earthquake 50 km WNW of San Antonio de los Cobres, Argentina
Thursday, February 29, 1996, 19:39:57 UTC · 24.066°S, 66.785°W
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 50 km WNW of San Antonio de los Cobres, Argentina on Thursday, February 29, 1996, 19:39:57 UTC, at a depth of 201.7 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.9 on December 20, 1995.
- Magnitude
- 4.8
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 202 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
239 tons of TNT
That is about 1/63 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 2 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
284 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
202 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 3 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M3.9 on March 7, 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 298 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 · 115 km W of this epicenter
- 7.087 km W of Abra Pampa, ArgentinaMay 24, 1993 · 157 km N of this epicenter
- 7.052 km W of Abra Pampa, ArgentinaApril 1, 1987 · 156 km N of this epicenter
- 6.930 km SSE of Santa Clara, ArgentinaAugust 25, 1948 · 236 km E of this epicenter
- 6.999 km WNW of San Antonio de los Cobres, ArgentinaFebruary 21, 1971 · 51 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.840 km SE of San Pedro de Atacama, ChileAugust 3, 1962 · 152 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.788 km WNW of El Aguilar, ArgentinaSeptember 1, 1987 · 116 km N of this epicenter
- 6.6176 km S of San Pedro de Atacama, ChileJune 11, 1970 · 176 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 13 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 36 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1930M6.1
La Poma
24 Dec 1930 · 180 km away · intensity VIII
31 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1953M7.4
Northern
7 Dec 1953 · 294 km away
3 deaths$7 million damage
- 1971M6.3
Catalina, Antofagasta
17 Jun 1971 · 291 km away · intensity V
1 deathModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1950M8.0
Chile-Argentina
9 Dec 1950 · 96 km away · intensity VII
1 death
- 1844M6.5
Salta, Jujuy, Tucuman
19 Oct 1844 · 131 km away · intensity VII
Severe damage ($5–24M)
- 1948M6.9
Salta
25 Aug 1948 · 236 km away · intensity IX
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.