Reviewed by USGSArgentina20y ago
M4.6 earthquake 135 km WSW of San Antonio de los Cobres, Argentina
Wednesday, November 15, 2006, 09:57:58 UTC · 24.586°S, 67.592°W
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 135 km WSW of San Antonio de los Cobres, Argentina on Wednesday, November 15, 2006, 09:57:58 UTC, at a depth of 200.0 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.7 on November 14, 2006.
- Magnitude
- 4.6
- Light · m
- Depth
- 200 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 earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
120 tons of TNT
That is about 1/126 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 4 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
341 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
200 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 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 436 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 · 75 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.684 km SSE of Antofagasta, ChileMarch 5, 1987 · 261 km W of this epicenter
- 7.583 km NNE of Taltal, ChileJuly 13, 1936 · 259 km W of this epicenter
- 7.377 km NNE of Taltal, ChileDecember 2, 1960 · 274 km W of this epicenter
- 7.275 km N of San Antonio de los Cobres, ArgentinaMay 12, 2000 · 163 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.272 km N of Taltal, ChileFebruary 5, 1988 · 288 km W of this epicenter
- 7.134 km SSE of Antofagasta, ChileJanuary 30, 1998 · 275 km W of this epicenter
- 7.187 km SSE of Antofagasta, ChileJuly 8, 1942 · 249 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 12 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 38 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1930M6.1
La Poma
24 Dec 1930 · 227 km away · intensity VIII
31 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1953M7.4
Northern
7 Dec 1953 · 299 km away
3 deaths$7 million damage
- 1936M7.3
Taltal
13 Jul 1936 · 244 km away
1 deathModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1987M7.3
Antofagasta, Arica
5 Mar 1987 · 261 km away · intensity VI
1 deathModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1971M6.3
Catalina, Antofagasta
17 Jun 1971 · 191 km away · intensity V
1 deathModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1950M8.0
Chile-Argentina
9 Dec 1950 · 121 km away · intensity VII
1 death
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.