M4.5 earthquake 72 km W of Iquique, Chile
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 72 km W of Iquique, Chile on Sun, Dec 29, 1985, 2:47 AM GMT-3 (05:47 UTC), 51 km (32 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.1 120 km W of Iquique, Chile. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.5 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1985-12-29 05:47:56 UTC
- Depth
- 51.3 km (31.9 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 20.188° S, 70.847° 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.
- Depth from
- FROM_LOCATION
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 4 in the 60 days after this one and 4 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.1120 km W of Iquique, Chile · 14872 days ago · 33 km deep · 48 km away
- 4.777 km WNW of Iquique, Chile · 14867 days ago · 33 km deep · 22 km away
- 4.863 km NW of Iquique, Chile · 14867 days ago · 33 km deep · 47 km away
- 4.8104 km WNW of Iquique, Chile · 14834 days ago · 33 km deep · 37 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayChile earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0002pj5. Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 7:36 AM UTC.