Reviewed by USGSArgentina20y ago
M3.9 earthquake 77 km NNW of San Antonio de los Cobres, Argentina
Sunday, September 24, 2006, 05:43:52 UTC · 23.574°S, 66.613°W
A magnitude 3.9 earthquake struck 77 km NNW of San Antonio de los Cobres, Argentina on Sunday, September 24, 2006, 05:43:52 UTC, at a depth of 185.4 km (intermediate).
- Magnitude
- 3.9
- Minor · mb
- Depth
- 185 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
229 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
185 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 October 11, 2006. 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 407 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 · 140 km W of this epicenter
- 7.751 km W of Atocha, BoliviaNovember 29, 1957 · 292 km N of this epicenter
- 7.275 km N of San Antonio de los Cobres, ArgentinaMay 12, 2000 · 17 km E of this epicenter
- 7.116 km NW of Villazón, BoliviaJanuary 23, 1997 · 198 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.087 km W of Abra Pampa, ArgentinaMay 24, 1993 · 101 km N of this epicenter
- 7.052 km W of Abra Pampa, ArgentinaApril 1, 1987 · 99 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.930 km SSE of Santa Clara, ArgentinaAugust 25, 1948 · 239 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.999 km WNW of San Antonio de los Cobres, ArgentinaFebruary 21, 1971 · 62 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 14 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 35 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1930M6.1
La Poma
24 Dec 1930 · 209 km away · intensity VIII
31 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1953M7.4
Northern
7 Dec 1953 · 269 km away
3 deaths$7 million damage
- 1950M8.0
Chile-Argentina
9 Dec 1950 · 91 km away · intensity VII
1 death
- 1844M6.5
Salta, Jujuy, Tucuman
19 Oct 1844 · 170 km away · intensity VII
Severe damage ($5–24M)
- 1948M6.9
Salta
25 Aug 1948 · 239 km away · intensity IX
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1959M6.6
Salta
12 May 1959 · 183 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.