Reviewed by USGSArgentina28y ago
M3.7 earthquake 21 km ESE of Calingasta, Argentina
Tuesday, December 22, 1998, 11:45:11 UTC · 31.394°S, 69.205°W
A magnitude 3.7 earthquake struck 21 km ESE of Calingasta, Argentina on Tuesday, December 22, 1998, 11:45:11 UTC, at a depth of 193.8 km (intermediate).
- Magnitude
- 3.7
- Minor · md
- Depth
- 194 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
5 tons of TNT
That is about 1/2,814 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 89 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
327 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and South American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: intermediate
194 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 4 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M3.8 on January 8, 1999. 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 463 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.2The 1906 Valparaiso, Chile EarthquakeAugust 17, 1906 · 235 km SW of this epicenter
- 8.145 km NNW of Illapel, ChileApril 6, 1943 · 206 km W of this epicenter
- 7.819 km NNE of Hacienda La Calera, ChileJuly 9, 1971 · 230 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.47 km SSE of La Ligua, ChileMarch 28, 1965 · 226 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.4San Juan, ArgentinaNovember 23, 1977 · 143 km E of this epicenter
- 7.136 km SW of Monte Patria, ChileOctober 15, 1997 · 198 km W of this epicenter
- 7.060 km WSW of Coquimbo, ChileApril 19, 1955 · 296 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.94 km ESE of Chimbas, ArgentinaJanuary 15, 1944 · 69 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 40 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 24,998 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1861
Mendoza, San Luiz
20 Mar 1861 · 161 km away · intensity IX
14,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1944M6.9
San Juan Province
15 Jan 1944 · 69 km away · intensity IX
10,000 deaths$100 million damage
- 1965M7.3
Central
28 Mar 1965 · 219 km away
400 deaths$125 million damage
- 1920M6.7
Mendoza
17 Dec 1920 · 94 km away · intensity VIII
400 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1971M7.8
Central
9 Jul 1971 · 225 km away · intensity IX
83 deaths$236 million damagetsunami
- 1977M7.5
San Juan Province: Mendoza
23 Nov 1977 · 133 km away · intensity IX
65 deaths$80 million damage
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.