Reviewed by USGSPeru25y ago
M3.9 earthquake 63 km WSW of Islay (Matarani), Peru
Sunday, December 16, 2001, 23:30:41 UTC · 17.294°S, 72.615°W
A magnitude 3.9 earthquake struck 63 km WSW of Islay (Matarani), Peru on Sunday, December 16, 2001, 23:30:41 UTC, at a depth of 69.3 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 3.9
- Minor · mb
- Depth
- 69 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
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
92 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and Altiplano plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
69 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 3 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.3 on December 31, 2001. 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:
- 8.46 km SSW of Atico, PeruJune 23, 2001 · 158 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.737 km SSW of Atico, PeruAugust 6, 1913 · 146 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.651 km SW of Punta de Bombón, PeruJuly 7, 2001 · 63 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.235 km N of El Cardo, PeruOctober 11, 1922 · 112 km N of this epicenter
- 7.212 km NNE of Cono Norte, PeruFebruary 26, 1914 · 165 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.130 km SW of Islay (Matarani), PeruApril 12, 1988 · 35 km E of this epicenter
- 7.021 km SW of Santa Rita de Siguas, PeruJanuary 15, 1958 · 84 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.925 km ENE of Arica, ChileAugust 30, 1906 · 292 km SE 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 26,588 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1868M8.5
Arica
13 Aug 1868 · 224 km away · intensity XI
25,000 deaths$300 million damagetsunami
- 1833M7.7
Peru: Tacna; Chile: Arica
18 Sep 1833 · 201 km away · intensity VIII
700 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1784M8.0
Arequipa,Camana,Moquegua,Tambo
13 May 1784 · 110 km away · intensity X
383 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1821
Camana, Ocona, Caraveli
10 Jul 1821 · 137 km away · intensity VIII
162 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 2001M8.4
Arequipa, Moquegua, Tacna, Ayacucho
23 Jun 2001 · 158 km away · intensity VIII
103 deaths$200 million damagetsunami
- 1991M4.7
Maca, Chivay, Yanque
23 Jul 1991 · 211 km away · intensity V
92 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.