Chile earthquakes

M4.2 earthquake 115 km NW of Vallenar, Chile

A magnitude 4.2 earthquake struck 115 km NW of Vallenar, Chile on Thu, Sep 3, 2020, 10:57 PM GMT-4 (02:57 UTC), 10 km (6 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M4.9 55 km W of Copiapó, Chile. This one was a foreshock.

Caldera 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
4.2 (Mwr, regional moment), light
Magnitude from
USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time
UTC
2020-09-04 02:57:52 UTC
Depth
10.0 km (6.2 mi), shallow
Epicenter
27.768° S, 71.502° 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
Reverse (thrust)
Moment magnitude
4.2 Mwr
Nodal plane 1
Strike 7°, dip 33°, rake 109°
Nodal plane 2
Strike 165°, dip 59°, rake 78°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty
About 3.5 km horizontally, 1.8 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.05
Depth from
Operator assigned
Station coverage gap
99°
Stations used
50

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 15 in the 60 days after this one and 46 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 4.0106 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2221 days ago · 17 km deep · 9 km away
  2. 4.8107 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2220 days ago · 11 km deep · 21 km away
  3. 4.0113 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2220 days ago · 12 km deep · 23 km away
  4. 4.4117 km W of Copiapó, Chile · 2219 days ago · 35 km deep · 55 km away
  5. 4.788 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2219 days ago · 19 km deep · 28 km away
  6. 4.590 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2219 days ago · 26 km deep · 27 km away
  7. 4.3103 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2218 days ago · 9 km deep · 12 km away
  8. 4.4111 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2217 days ago · 10 km deep · 34 km away
  9. 4.6116 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2215 days ago · 10 km deep · 2 km away · felt by 1
  10. 4.583 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2213 days ago · 20 km deep · 39 km away
  11. 4.176 km W of Vallenar, Chile · 2211 days ago · 38 km deep · 89 km away
  12. 4.3106 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2211 days ago · 17 km deep · 11 km away
  13. 4.5101 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2210 days ago · 18 km deep · 15 km away
  14. 4.462 km WNW of Vallenar, Chile · 2205 days ago · 38 km deep · 78 km away
  15. 4.955 km W of Copiapó, Chile · 2177 days ago · 32 km deep · 80 km away · felt by 1

Before

  1. 4.4110 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2221 days ago · 10 km deep · 10 km away
  2. 4.4124 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2222 days ago · 11 km deep · 18 km away
  3. 4.6112 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2222 days ago · 10 km deep · 10 km away
  4. 4.0124 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2222 days ago · 10 km deep · 27 km away
  5. 4.699 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2222 days ago · 10 km deep · 21 km away
  6. 4.4107 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2223 days ago · 10 km deep · 16 km away
  7. 4.2117 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2223 days ago · 11 km deep · 13 km away
  8. 3.9123 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2223 days ago · 10 km deep · 22 km away
  9. 4.778 km NNW of Vallenar, Chile · 2223 days ago · 29 km deep · 38 km away
  10. 3.9107 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2223 days ago · 18 km deep · 13 km away
  11. 4.489 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2223 days ago · 26 km deep · 26 km away
  12. 4.493 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2223 days ago · 18 km deep · 22 km away
  13. 4.3108 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2223 days ago · 10 km deep · 9 km away
  14. 4.8102 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2223 days ago · 15 km deep · 13 km away · felt by 1
  15. 4.4101 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2224 days ago · 10 km deep · 20 km away
  16. 6.594 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2224 days ago · 16 km deep · 21 km away · felt by 44
  17. 5.099 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2224 days ago · 16 km deep · 16 km away · felt by 1
  18. 3.9111 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2224 days ago · 17 km deep · 10 km away
  19. 3.8116 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2224 days ago · 16 km deep · 2 km away
  20. 4.3117 km NW of Vallenar, Chile · 2224 days ago · 10 km deep · 11 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us7000bhlw. Read Sun, Oct 4, 2026, 12:34 PM UTC.