M4.6 earthquake 41 km NNW of Valparaíso, Chile
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 41 km NNW of Valparaíso, Chile on Thu, May 17, 2012, 2:50 AM GMT-4 (06:50 UTC), 29 km (18 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M4.8 35 km W of La Ligua, Chile. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.6 (mb, body-wave), light
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 2012-05-17 06:50:54 UTC
- Depth
- 28.7 km (17.8 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 32.697° S, 71.816° W
- Region
- Chile
- Felt reports
- 7
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
What happened
The USGS’s account of the effects of this earthquake.
Felt (III) at Quillota, Valparaiso and Vina del Mar; (II) at San Felipe. Also felt at Santiago.
From the USGS event page for usp000jkh6. U.S. Geological Survey text and figures are in the public domain.
Did you feel it?
7 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was II, weak shaking.
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Station coverage gap
- 87°
- Stations used
- 39
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.6 and up: 3 in the 60 days after this one and 5 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.349 km WNW of La Ligua, Chile · 5248 days ago · 31 km deep · 52 km away
- 3.940 km NNW of Valparaíso, Chile · 5211 days ago · 20 km deep · 9 km away
- 4.835 km W of La Ligua, Chile · 5201 days ago · 33 km deep · 30 km away · felt by 3
Before
- 3.734 km N of Valparaíso, Chile · 5253 days ago · 45 km deep · 13 km away
- 4.327 km WNW of Valparaíso, Chile · 5258 days ago · 13 km deep · 23 km away
- 4.146 km NNW of Valparaíso, Chile · 5271 days ago · 5 km deep · 5 km away
- 4.150 km W of La Ligua, Chile · 5281 days ago · 31 km deep · 28 km away
- 3.838 km WSW of La Ligua, Chile · 5282 days ago · 25 km deep · 23 km away
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Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp000jkh6 (also filed as usb0009rs3). Read Sat, Oct 3, 2026, 8:23 PM UTC.