M5.9 earthquake 93 km WSW of Illapel, Chile
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 93 km WSW of Illapel, Chile on Mon, Sep 18, 2017, 10:46 AM GMT-3 (13:46 UTC), 17 km (11 mi) below the surface.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 5.9 (mww), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 2017-09-18 13:46:57 UTC
- Depth
- 17.0 km (10.6 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 31.822° S, 72.126° W
- Region
- Chile
- Felt reports
- 115
- Strongest shaking
- IV, light shaking
- PAGER alert
- Green
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Shaking
The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.
- Strongest estimated
- IV, light shaking
- Peak ground acceleration
- 3.8% of gravity
- Peak ground velocity
- 0.8 cm/s
- Map
- Automatic
Did you feel it?
115 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was VI, strong shaking.
Estimated impact
The USGS PAGER system estimates deaths and economic losses from the shaking and the population and buildings exposed to it.
- Alert level
- Green: little or no damage or loss of life expected
| Range | Chance |
|---|---|
| Under 1 | 65% |
| 1 to 10 | 30% |
| 10 to 100 | 4% |
| 100 to 1,000 | Under 1% |
| 1,000 to 10,000 | Under 1% |
| 10,000 to 100,000 | Under 1% |
| 100,000 to 10,000,000 | Under 1% |
| Range, million USD | Chance |
|---|---|
| Under 1 | 68% |
| 1 to 10 | 30% |
| 10 to 100 | 2% |
| 100 to 1,000 | Under 1% |
| 1,000 to 10,000 | Under 1% |
| 10,000 to 100,000 | Under 1% |
| 100,000 to 10,000,000 | Under 1% |
Fault motion and ground failure
How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.
- Faulting
- Reverse (thrust)
- Moment magnitude
- 5.9 Mww
- Nodal plane 1
- Strike 358°, dip 10°, rake 93°
- Nodal plane 2
- Strike 174°, dip 80°, rake 89°
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Location uncertainty
- About 5.7 km horizontally, 1.8 km in depth
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.07
- Depth from
- From modeling of broad-band P waveforms
- Station coverage gap
- 44°
- Stations used
- 101
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.5 and up: 13 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.3102 km WSW of Illapel, Chile · 3293 days ago · 10 km deep · 9 km away
- 4.396 km W of Illapel, Chile · 3292 days ago · 10 km deep · 4 km away
- 3.9118 km W of Illapel, Chile · 3292 days ago · 10 km deep · 28 km away
- 4.2113 km W of Illapel, Chile · 3292 days ago · 10 km deep · 21 km away · felt by 1
- 4.5124 km W of Illapel, Chile · 3291 days ago · 10 km deep · 33 km away · felt by 5
- 4.0Off the coast of Coquimbo, Chile · 3291 days ago · 10 km deep · 10 km away
- 4.351 km NW of Valparaíso, Chile · 3286 days ago · 24 km deep · 97 km away · felt by 45
- 4.3103 km W of Illapel, Chile · 3284 days ago · 14 km deep · 12 km away · felt by 21
- 4.199 km W of Illapel, Chile · 3281 days ago · 39 km deep · 16 km away · felt by 6
- 4.161 km W of La Ligua, Chile · 3274 days ago · 20 km deep · 78 km away · felt by 103
- 4.178 km SW of Ovalle, Chile · 3268 days ago · 21 km deep · 88 km away · felt by 3
- 4.7143 km NW of Valparaíso, Chile · 3266 days ago · 10 km deep · 82 km away · felt by 127
- 3.763 km NW of Illapel, Chile · 3244 days ago · 35 km deep · 91 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayChile earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us2000apwd (also filed as iscgem610984687). Read Thu, Sep 24, 2026, 2:14 AM UTC.