Chile earthquakes

M4.6 earthquake 103 km NE of Calama, Chile

A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 103 km NE of Calama, Chile on Sun, Jan 31, 2016, 4:42 AM GMT-3 (07:42 UTC), 116 km (72 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M4.7 146 km NE of San Pedro de Atacama, Chile. This one was a foreshock.

Calama 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), light
Local time
UTC
2016-01-31 07:42:50 UTC
Depth
115.7 km (71.9 mi), intermediate-depth
Epicenter
21.925° S, 68.100° 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.

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
Oblique normal
Moment magnitude
4.6 Mwr
Nodal plane 1
Strike 346°, dip 71°, rake -140°
Nodal plane 2
Strike 241°, dip 53°, rake -25°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty
About 6.6 km horizontally, 6.1 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.05
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
75°
Stations used
52

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.6 and up: 9 in the 60 days after this one and 7 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 4.1121 km NNE of Calama, Chile · 3893 days ago · 126 km deep · 75 km away
  2. 4.698 km NE of Calama, Chile · 3892 days ago · 117 km deep · 34 km away
  3. 4.189 km NE of Calama, Chile · 3881 days ago · 137 km deep · 36 km away
  4. 4.4119 km NNE of Calama, Chile · 3874 days ago · 140 km deep · 54 km away
  5. 3.9121 km NNE of Calama, Chile · 3867 days ago · 134 km deep · 70 km away
  6. 4.221 km NE of Calama, Chile · 3853 days ago · 128 km deep · 82 km away
  7. 4.575 km NE of Calama, Chile · 3851 days ago · 121 km deep · 39 km away
  8. 4.6102 km NE of San Pedro de Atacama, Chile · 3836 days ago · 190 km deep · 79 km away
  9. 4.7146 km NE of San Pedro de Atacama, Chile · 3836 days ago · 216 km deep · 89 km away

Before

  1. 4.4149 km NE of San Pedro de Atacama, Chile · 3895 days ago · 173 km deep · 92 km away
  2. 4.0112 km NNE of Calama, Chile · 3900 days ago · 131 km deep · 64 km away
  3. 4.5119 km N of Calama, Chile · 3901 days ago · 111 km deep · 87 km away
  4. 4.494 km NNE of Calama, Chile · 3902 days ago · 120 km deep · 44 km away
  5. 4.163 km NE of Calama, Chile · 3904 days ago · 108 km deep · 45 km away
  6. 5.0128 km N of Calama, Chile · 3908 days ago · 90 km deep · 97 km away
  7. 4.786 km NE of San Pedro de Atacama, Chile · 3917 days ago · 147 km deep · 70 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us20004w4e. Read Tue, Sep 29, 2026, 8:50 PM UTC.