M4.8 earthquake 159 km NNE of Calama, Chile
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 159 km NNE of Calama, Chile on Sun, Apr 6, 1980, 12:05 AM GMT-4 (04:05 UTC), 125 km (78 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.4 130 km N 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
- 1980-04-06 04:05:17 UTC
- Depth
- 125.0 km (77.7 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 21.098° S, 68.409° 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
- 24
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 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.4130 km N of Calama, Chile · 16969 days ago · 100 km deep · 39 km away
- 4.880 km N of Calama, Chile · 16921 days ago · 88 km deep · 82 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayChile earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp00016fj. Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 4:36 AM UTC.