Chile earthquakes

M5.2 earthquake 49 km ENE of Calama, Chile

A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 49 km ENE of Calama, Chile on Thu, May 20, 2021, 2:27 PM GMT-4 (18:27 UTC), 115 km (71 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: 5.2 (Mww, W-phase moment), moderate
Magnitude from: USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time: Thu, May 20, 2021, 2:27 PM GMT-4
UTC: 2021-05-20 18:27:54 UTC
Depth: 114.8 km (71.3 mi), intermediate-depth
Epicenter: 22.209° S, 68.520° W
Region: Chile
Felt reports: 2
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
5.2	Mww, W-phase moment	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Preferred · Reviewed · ±0.062 · 25 stations
5.22	Mw, moment	ISC-GEM global catalog	Final · ±0.1
5.2	Mww, W-phase moment	USGS, automatic first solution	First automatic solution · Confirmed

Did you feel it?

2 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was III, weak shaking.

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty: About 6.4 km horizontally, 3.9 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty: ±0.06
Depth from: From location
Station coverage gap: 37°
Stations used: 109

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.2 and up: 12 in the 60 days after this one and 9 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 us7000e4ur (also filed as usauto7000e4ur, iscgem620433898). Read Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 8:23 PM UTC.