Chile earthquakes

M6.1 earthquake 115 km E of Iquique, Chile

A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck 115 km E of Iquique, Chile on Sun, Dec 6, 2020, 1:47 PM GMT-3 (16:47 UTC), 105 km (65 mi) below the surface.

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Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

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The earthquake

Magnitude: 6.1 (Mww, W-phase moment), strong
Magnitude from: USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time: Sun, Dec 6, 2020, 1:47 PM GMT-3
UTC: 2020-12-06 16:47:42 UTC
Depth: 105.0 km (65.2 mi), intermediate-depth
Epicenter: 20.395° S, 69.061° W
Region: Chile
Felt reports: 104
Strongest shaking: VI, strong 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
6.1	Mww, W-phase moment	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Preferred · Reviewed · ±0.05 · 39 stations
6.11	Mw, moment	ISC-GEM global catalog	Final · ±0.1
5.8	Mi	NOAA National Tsunami Warning Center	First automatic solution · Reviewed · 16 stations
6.1	Mwb, body-wave moment	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Moment tensor · Reviewed
6.2	Mww, W-phase moment	USGS, automatic first solution	First automatic solution · Confirmed

Shaking

The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.

Strongest estimated: VI, strong shaking
Peak ground acceleration: 9.3% of gravity
Peak ground velocity: 2.5 cm/s
Map: Automatic

USGS ShakeMap: estimated shaking intensity around the epicenter — Estimated shaking intensity. Map: USGS ShakeMap.

Did you feel it?

104 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

Deaths: estimated chance of each range
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%

Economic losses: estimated chance of each range
Range, million USD	Chance
Under 1	96%
1 to 10	4%
10 to 100	Under 1%
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: 6.1 Mww
Nodal plane 1: Strike 187°, dip 20°, rake -75°
Nodal plane 2: Strike 351°, dip 71°, rake -95°
Landslide alert: Green
Liquefaction alert: Green

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty: About 3.1 km horizontally, 1.9 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty: ±0.05
Depth from: From modeling of broad-band P waveforms
Station coverage gap: 30°
Stations used: 108

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 3.1 and up: 11 in the 60 days after this one and 7 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

Earthquakes today Chile earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us7000cnnz (also filed as usauto7000cnnz, at00qkxfzj, iscgem621560715). Read Sat, Oct 3, 2026, 9:15 AM UTC.