M6.3 earthquake 100 km ESE of Arica, Chile
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck 100 km ESE of Arica, Chile on Sat, Jan 20, 2018, 10:06 PM GMT-3 (01:06 UTC), 116 km (72 mi) below the surface.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 6.3 (Mww, W-phase moment), strong
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 2018-01-21 01:06:42 UTC
- Depth
- 116.0 km (72.1 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 18.881° S, 69.445° W
- Region
- Chile
- Felt reports
- 64
- Strongest shaking
- V, moderate shaking
- PAGER alert
- Green
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Magnitude estimates
Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.
| Mag. | Scale | Computed by | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.3 | Mww, W-phase moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Preferred · Reviewed · ±0.047 · 44 stations |
| 6.32 | Mw, moment | ISC-GEM global catalog | Final · ±0.1 |
| 6.3 | Mwb, body-wave moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Moment tensor · Reviewed |
| 6.3 | Mwr, regional moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Moment tensor · Reviewed |
Shaking
The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.
- Strongest estimated
- V, moderate shaking
- Peak ground acceleration
- 5.5% of gravity
- Peak ground velocity
- 0.8 cm/s
- Map
- Automatic
Did you feel it?
64 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 | 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% |
Fault motion and ground failure
How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.
- Faulting
- Normal
- Moment magnitude
- 6.3 Mww
- Nodal plane 1
- Strike 189°, dip 26°, rake -75°
- Nodal plane 2
- Strike 352°, dip 65°, rake -97°
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Location uncertainty
- About 6.4 km horizontally, 1.8 km in depth
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.05
- Depth from
- From modeling of broad-band P waveforms
- Station coverage gap
- 15°
- Stations used
- 382
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 3.3 and up: 6 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.283 km SE of Palca, Peru · 3174 days ago · 123 km deep · 58 km away
- 4.992 km SE of Palca, Peru · 3171 days ago · 10 km deep · 63 km away
- 4.292 km SE of Palca, Peru · 3170 days ago · 10 km deep · 70 km away
- 4.560 km ESE of Palca, Peru · 3167 days ago · 135 km deep · 95 km away
- 4.7120 km ESE of Arica, Chile · 3144 days ago · 109 km deep · 20 km away · felt by 1
- 5.0118 km SW of Curahuara de Carangas, Bolivia · 3119 days ago · 131 km deep · 41 km away · felt by 3
Before
Earthquakes todayChile earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us2000cm0f (also filed as iscgem611835791). Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 3:26 AM UTC.