Chile earthquakes

M5.2 earthquake 35 km NW of Iquique, Chile

A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 35 km NW of Iquique, Chile on Sat, Jan 30, 2021, 10:24 AM GMT-3 (13:24 UTC), 59 km (36 mi) below the surface.

Iquique forecast More in Chile

Map

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

Open the live map with earthquakes

The earthquake

Magnitude: 5.2 (Mww, W-phase moment), moderate
Magnitude from: USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time: Sat, Jan 30, 2021, 10:24 AM GMT-3
UTC: 2021-01-30 13:24:59 UTC
Depth: 58.5 km (36.4 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 19.959° S, 70.354° W
Region: Chile
Felt reports: 54
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 · ±0.071 · 19 stations
5.05	Mw, moment	ISC-GEM global catalog	Final · ±0.1
5.1	Mwr, regional moment	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Moment tensor · Reviewed

Did you feel it?

54 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was V, moderate shaking.

Fault motion and ground failure

How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.

Faulting: Strike-slip
Moment magnitude: 5.1 Mwr
Nodal plane 1: Strike 222°, dip 26°, rake -18°
Nodal plane 2: Strike 329°, dip 82°, rake -115°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty: About 4.6 km horizontally, 4.3 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty: ±0.07
Depth from: From location
Station coverage gap: 136°
Stations used: 62

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.2 and up: 10 in the 60 days after this one and 4 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 us6000dd81 (also filed as iscgem619781989). Read Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 8:23 PM UTC.