Reviewed by USGSChile16y ago
M4.2 earthquake 25 km ENE of Constitución, Chile
Wednesday, August 25, 2010, 23:40:22 UTC · 35.219°S, 72.171°W
A magnitude 4.2 earthquake struck 25 km ENE of Constitución, Chile on Wednesday, August 25, 2010, 23:40:22 UTC, at a depth of 8.8 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 4.2
- Light · ml
- Depth
- 9 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
30 tons of TNT
That is about 1/500 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 16 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
137 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
9 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 M4.5 on August 30, 2010. 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 632 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.82010 Maule, Chile EarthquakeFebruary 27, 2010 · 120 km SW of this epicenter
- 8.025 km WSW of Valparaíso, ChileMarch 3, 1985 · 233 km N of this epicenter
- 7.826 km WNW of San Carlos, ChileJanuary 25, 1939 · 120 km S of this epicenter
- 7.730 km NNE of Constitución, ChileDecember 1, 1928 · 17 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.7103 km NW of Constitución, ChileJanuary 30, 1914 · 115 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.523 km SE of Chiguayante, ChileMay 6, 1953 · 218 km S of this epicenter
- 7.419 km S of Valparaíso, ChileMarch 4, 1985 · 229 km N of this epicenter
- 7.247 km NW of Cauquenes, ChileDecember 2, 1928 · 75 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 37 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 35,233 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1939M8.3
Chillan
25 Jan 1939 · 115 km away · intensity X
30,000 deaths$920 million damagetsunami
- 1906M8.2
South Central
17 Aug 1906 · 247 km away · intensity XI
4,000 deaths$100 million damagetsunami
- 2010M8.8
Maule, Concepcion, Talcahuano
27 Feb 2010 · 120 km away · intensity IX
558 deaths$30 billion damagetsunami
- 1928M7.6
Talca, Chillan, Santiago, San Fernando
1 Dec 1928 · 29 km away · intensity IX
279 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1985M8.0
Central Coast, San Antonio, Valparaiso
3 Mar 1985 · 236 km away · intensity VIII
180 deaths$1.5 billion damagetsunami
- 1822M8.5
Valparaiso, Quillota, Concon, Aconcagua
20 Nov 1822 · 247 km away · intensity XI
72 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.