M4.8 earthquake 54 km NE of Calama, Chile
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 54 km NE of Calama, Chile on Sun, May 7, 1978, 9:52 PM GMT-4 (01:52 UTC), 110 km (68 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.0 103 km NNW of Calama, Chile. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.8 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-05-08 01:52:06 UTC
- Depth
- 110.0 km (68.4 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 22.149° S, 68.515° W
- Region
- Chile
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Stations used
- 9
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.8 and up: 2 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.733 km E of Calama, Chile · 17648 days ago · 113 km deep · 29 km away
- 5.0103 km NNW of Calama, Chile · 17642 days ago · 102 km deep · 95 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayChile earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000uek. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 7:04 AM UTC.