M4.6 earthquake 145 km SE of Arica, Chile
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 145 km SE of Arica, Chile on Tue, Dec 27, 2016, 10:06 PM GMT-3 (01:06 UTC), 109 km (68 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.2 136 km NE 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
- 4.6 (mwr), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 2016-12-28 01:06:53 UTC
- Depth
- 109.0 km (67.7 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 19.233° S, 69.167° 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.
Fault motion and ground failure
How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.
- Faulting
- Oblique normal
- Moment magnitude
- 4.3 Mwr
- Nodal plane 1
- Strike 185°, dip 44°, rake -31°
- Nodal plane 2
- Strike 299°, dip 69°, rake -130°
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Location uncertainty
- About 6.5 km horizontally, 3.7 km in depth
- Depth from
- From location
- Station coverage gap
- 36°
- Stations used
- 98
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.6 and up: 6 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.0119 km ENE of Iquique, Chile · 3560 days ago · 108 km deep · 51 km away
- 4.1108 km ENE of Iquique, Chile · 3544 days ago · 100 km deep · 71 km away
- 4.499 km SE of Palca, Peru · 3537 days ago · 134 km deep · 90 km away
- 4.4127 km E of Iquique, Chile · 3537 days ago · 121 km deep · 99 km away
- 4.4105 km ENE of Iquique, Chile · 3528 days ago · 98 km deep · 81 km away
- 5.2136 km NE of Iquique, Chile · 3505 days ago · 108 km deep · 29 km away · felt by 5
Before
Earthquakes todayChile earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us10007n47. Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 11:55 PM UTC.