Reviewed by USGSMexico23y ago
M3.8 earthquake 71 km SSW of Emiliano Zapata, Mexico
Tuesday, February 18, 2003, 05:59:28 UTC · 18.810°N, 105.270°W
A magnitude 3.8 earthquake struck 71 km SSW of Emiliano Zapata, Mexico on Tuesday, February 18, 2003, 05:59:28 UTC, at a depth of 30.4 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 3.8
- Minor · md
- Depth
- 30 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 earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
8 tons of TNT
That is about 1/1,992 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 63 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
3 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the North American and Rivera plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
30 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 has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 192 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 · 178 km NE of this epicenter
- 8.01995 Colima-Jalisco, Mexico EarthquakeOctober 9, 1995 · 115 km E of this epicenter
- 8.01985 Michoacan, Mexico EarthquakeSeptember 19, 1985 · 297 km E of this epicenter
- 7.87 km E of Los Tepames, MexicoJune 18, 1932 · 183 km E of this epicenter
- 7.712 km NNE of La Central, MexicoJune 22, 1932 · 105 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.621 km ESE of Coalcomán de Vázquez Pallares, MexicoApril 15, 1941 · 241 km E of this epicenter
- 7.616 km SSW of Cuyutlán, MexicoJanuary 22, 2003 · 123 km E of this epicenter
- 7.619 km W of Arteaga, MexicoJune 7, 1911 · 299 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 32 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 14,220 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1985M8.1
Michoacan: Mexico City
19 Sep 1985 · 297 km away · intensity IX
9,500 deaths$4.0 billion damagetsunami
- 1806M7.5
Jalisco,Oaxaca,Michoacan
25 Mar 1806 · 155 km away · intensity VIII
2,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1818M8.2
Morelos-Guerrero,Mexico City,Guadalajara
31 May 1818 · 144 km away · intensity X
2,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1932M8.1
Near Coast Of Jalisco
3 Jun 1932 · 168 km away · intensity X
400 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1941M7.6
Michoacan, Colima, Jalisco
15 Apr 1941 · 241 km away · intensity VII
84 deaths$2 million damagetsunami
- 1932M7.7
Central
22 Jun 1932 · 105 km away
75 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.