M5.9 earthquake 6 km NE of Curanilahue, Chile

Thursday, August 5, 2010, 06:01:47 UTC · 37.443°S, 73.281°W

A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 6 km NE of Curanilahue, Chile on Thursday, August 5, 2010, 06:01:47 UTC, at a depth of 18.0 km (shallow). USGS received 51 “Did You Feel It?” reports, with a maximum reported intensity of VII (very strong). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.6 on July 14, 2010.

Magnitude: 5.9; Moderate · mwc
Depth: 18 km; Shallow
Felt reports: 51; Max intensity VII
Est. shaking: VI; Strong (ShakeMap)
PAGER alert: None; Not issued
Tsunami: No flag; USGS feed

Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 75 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

11 kilotons of TNT

That is about the energy of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 22 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

113 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: shallow

18 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

Reports sent by people to USGS, grouped by place (most reports first). Intensity uses the Modified Mercalli scale (I–X): what people felt, not the magnitude.

Place	Intensity	Reports	Distance
Concepción, Bío Bío, Chile	IV · Light	12	73 km
Chiguayante, Bío Bío, Chile	IV · Light	7	66 km
Chillán, Bío Bío, Chile	III · Weak	7	141 km
Los Angeles, Bío Bío, Chile	IV · Light	4	83 km
Lebu, Bío Bío, Chile	VII · Very strong	2	41 km
Angol, Araucanía, Chile	V · Moderate	2	65 km
Nacimiento, Bío Bío, Chile	III · Weak	2	56 km
Temuco, Araucanía, Chile	II · Weak	2	156 km
Cañete, Bío Bío, Chile	VI · Strong	1	45 km
Curanilahue, Bío Bío, Chile	V · Moderate	1	19 km
Laja, Bío Bío, Chile	V · Moderate	1	56 km
Talcahuano, Bío Bío, Chile	IV · Light	1	81 km

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 75 km

USGS lists 14 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.4 on August 5, 2010. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 392 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 26 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 33,253 recorded deaths. The most severe:

1939M8.3
Chillan
25 Jan 1939 · 161 km away · intensity X
30,000 deaths$920 million damagetsunami
1960M9.5
Puerto Montt, Valdivia
22 May 1960 · 79 km away · intensity XII
2,226 deaths$1.0 billion damagetsunami
2010M8.8
Maule, Concepcion, Talcahuano
27 Feb 2010 · 151 km away · intensity IX
558 deaths$30 billion damagetsunami
1928M7.6
Talca, Chillan, Santiago, San Fernando
1 Dec 1928 · 295 km away · intensity IX
279 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
1751M8.5
Concepcion, Chillan, Talca, Tutuben, Curico
25 May 1751 · 161 km away · intensity XI
65 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
1949M7.3
Angol, Traiguen
20 Apr 1949 · 65 km away
57 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

Nearby trackers