Chile earthquakes

M4.6 earthquake 21 km SW of Melipilla, Chile

A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 21 km SW of Melipilla, Chile on Sun, Dec 16, 2012, 7:46 PM GMT-3 (22:46 UTC), 63 km (39 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.4 46 km WNW of Cartagena, Chile. This one was a foreshock.

Melipilla forecastMore in Chile

Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

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The earthquake

Magnitude
4.6 (Mwr, regional moment), light
Magnitude from
USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time
UTC
2012-12-16 22:46:11 UTC
Depth
63.0 km (39.1 mi), shallow
Epicenter
33.803° S, 71.408° W
Region
Chile
Felt reports
18
Tsunami flag
No
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

What happened

The USGS’s account of the effects of this earthquake.

Felt (IV) at Algarrobo, Cartagena, Casablanca, El Quisco, El Tabo, San Antonio, Santo Domingo and Vina del Mar; (III) at Melipilla, Navidad, Pichilemu, San Bernardo, Tiltil and Valparaiso; (II) at Curico, Lolol, Paredones, Parral, Quillota, Rancagua, San Clemente, San Fernando, Santiago and Villa Alemana. Also felt at Colina.

From the USGS event page for usp000jx1y. U.S. Geological Survey text and figures are in the public domain.

Did you feel it?

18 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was III, weak shaking.

Did You Feel It? map: shaking reported by the public
Shaking reported by the public, by area. Map: USGS Did You Feel It?

Fault motion and ground failure

How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.

Faulting
Reverse (thrust)
Nodal plane 1
Strike 168°, dip 79°, rake 84°
Nodal plane 2
Strike 16°, dip 13°, rake 117°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Station coverage gap
116°
Stations used
68

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.6 and up: 8 in the 60 days after this one and 8 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 3.95 km NNE of Melipilla, Chile · 5037 days ago · 66 km deep · 27 km away
  2. 4.851 km SW of San Antonio, Chile · 5031 days ago · 12 km deep · 52 km away · felt by 10
  3. 4.25 km E of Chicureo Abajo, Chile · 5026 days ago · 100 km deep · 95 km away
  4. 4.19 km SE of Limache, Chile · 5015 days ago · 66 km deep · 82 km away · felt by 8
  5. 5.446 km WNW of Cartagena, Chile · 4982 days ago · 47 km deep · 75 km away · felt by 62
  6. 5.057 km W of Cartagena, Chile · 4982 days ago · 46 km deep · 85 km away · felt by 8
  7. 3.967 km WNW of Santa Cruz, Chile · 4982 days ago · 7 km deep · 79 km away
  8. 3.892 km SW of San Antonio, Chile · 4981 days ago · 42 km deep · 91 km away

Before

  1. 3.921 km SW of Melipilla, Chile · 5041 days ago · 59 km deep · 7 km away
  2. 5.250 km SW of San Antonio, Chile · 5063 days ago · 16 km deep · 56 km away · felt by 10
  3. 4.279 km SW of San Antonio, Chile · 5063 days ago · 35 km deep · 86 km away
  4. 5.945 km SSW of San Antonio, Chile · 5063 days ago · 18 km deep · 45 km away · felt by 73
  5. 5.158 km SW of San Antonio, Chile · 5063 days ago · 19 km deep · 65 km away · felt by 19
  6. 5.469 km WSW of San Antonio, Chile · 5064 days ago · 16 km deep · 79 km away · felt by 28
  7. 5.163 km SW of San Antonio, Chile · 5065 days ago · 11 km deep · 72 km away · felt by 9
  8. 4.2Off the coast of Valparaiso, Chile · 5066 days ago · 1 km deep · 71 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp000jx1y (also filed as usc000eavl). Read Sat, Oct 3, 2026, 1:39 AM UTC.