In the South Pacific Ocean 31 kilometer from Valparaíso, Chile, a significant M5.1 earthquake occurred in the morning of Monday November 6th, 2023. Another country near the epicenter is Argentina.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the South Pacific Ocean, 23 kilometers (14 mi) off the coast of Chile, 31 kilometer west of Valparaíso. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 31 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.
| Date and Time: | Nov 6, 2023 10:51 (Santiago Time) - Nov 6, 2023 13:51 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 31 km west of Valparaíso, Chile. Coordinates 33°4'27"S 71°57'28"W. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 5.1 Detected by 11 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.093 . |
| Depth: | 31 km (19 mi) A quite shallow depth. |
| Tsunami Risk: | Low tsunami risk Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 do not usually cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here. |
Nearby towns and cities
Chile and Argentina are both located within 300km distance of the epicenter of the earthquake.
Valparaíso in Valparaíso, Chile is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 31 kilometer (19 mi) west of Valparaíso.
Major cities near this earthquake: Santiago is located 129 km to the east-southeast. Valparaíso is located 31 km to the east. Viña del Mar is located 38 km to the east.
The table below provides an overview of all places in proximity of today's earthquake.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 31 km (19 mi) E from epicenter |
Valparaíso Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 38 km (24 mi) E from epicenter |
Viña del Mar Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 48 km (30 mi) E from epicenter |
Quilpué Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 55 km (34 mi) E from epicenter |
Villa Alemana Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 62 km (39 mi) SSE from epicenter |
Cartagena Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 65 km (40 mi) E from epicenter |
Limache Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 66 km (41 mi) SSE from epicenter |
San Antonio Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 69 km (43 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Quillota Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 76 km (47 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Hacienda La Calera Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 97 km (60 mi) NE from epicenter |
La Ligua Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 97 km (60 mi) SE from epicenter |
Melipilla Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 97 km (60 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Llaillay Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 103 km (64 mi) ESE from epicenter |
Lampa Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 113 km (70 mi) SE from epicenter |
El Monte Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 116 km (72 mi) SE from epicenter |
Talagante Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 117 km (73 mi) ESE from epicenter |
Peñaflor Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 121 km (75 mi) ENE from epicenter |
San Felipe Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 122 km (76 mi) ESE from epicenter |
Lo Prado Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 124 km (77 mi) E from epicenter |
Chicureo Abajo Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 129 km (80 mi) ESE from epicenter |
Santiago Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 130 km (81 mi) ESE from epicenter |
San Bernardo Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 130 km (81 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Los Andes Valparaíso, Chile. |
| 134 km (83 mi) ESE from epicenter |
Buin Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 135 km (84 mi) ESE from epicenter |
La Pintana Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 139 km (86 mi) SE from epicenter |
Paine Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 142 km (88 mi) ESE from epicenter |
Puente Alto Santiago Metropolitan, Chile. |
| 159 km (99 mi) SE from epicenter |
Graneros O'Higgins Region, Chile. |
| 166 km (103 mi) SE from epicenter |
Rancagua O'Higgins Region, Chile. |
| 171 km (106 mi) SSE from epicenter |
San Vicente O'Higgins Region, Chile. |
| 172 km (107 mi) SSE from epicenter |
San Vicente de Tagua Tagua O'Higgins Region, Chile. |
| 173 km (107 mi) SE from epicenter |
Machalí O'Higgins Region, Chile. |
| 176 km (109 mi) NNE from epicenter |
Illapel Coquimbo Region, Chile. |
| 180 km (112 mi) SE from epicenter |
Rengo O'Higgins Region, Chile. |
| 182 km (113 mi) SSE from epicenter |
Santa Cruz O'Higgins Region, Chile. |
| 201 km (125 mi) SSE from epicenter |
Chimbarongo O'Higgins Region, Chile. |
| 222 km (138 mi) SSE from epicenter |
Curicó Maule Region, Chile. |
| 235 km (146 mi) SSE from epicenter |
Molina Maule Region, Chile. |
| 255 km (158 mi) S from epicenter |
Constitución Maule Region, Chile. |
| 263 km (163 mi) S from epicenter |
Talca Maule Region, Chile. |
| 281 km (175 mi) S from epicenter |
San Javier Maule Region, Chile. |
| 284 km (176 mi) NNE from epicenter |
Ovalle Coquimbo Region, Chile. |
| 293 km (182 mi) E from epicenter |
Mendoza Mendoza, Argentina. |
Shaking reported by 61 people in 2 countries
People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 61 people have reported shaking in 13 places in 2 countries (Argentina, Chile).We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.
Places with most reports:
- Santiago, Metropolitana, Chile: 27 people.
- Viña del Mar, Valparaíso, Chile: 9 people.
- Quilpué, Valparaíso, Chile: 7 people.
- Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile: 5 people.
- Lampa, Metropolitana, Chile: 3 people.
- Puente Alto, Metropolitana, Chile: 2 people.
- San Bernardo, Metropolitana, Chile: 2 people.
- La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina: 1 person.
- Calera, Valparaíso, Chile: 1 person.
- Limache, Valparaíso, Chile: 1 person.
5 Aftershocks detected
This main shock was followed by 5 smaller aftershocks. At a distance of 32 km (20 mi) north of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 2 days later. It measured a magnitude of 3.7
Before this earthquake struck, 2 smaller foreshocks occurred. Roughly 1 day before this earthquake, a foreshock measuring MAG-3.4 was detected nearby this earthquake.
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
| Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreshock | M 2.6 |
2 days earlier Nov 4, 2023 18:41 (Santiago Time) | 74 km (46 mi) SSE from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 3.4 |
1 day earlier Nov 5, 2023 09:25 (Santiago Time) | 61 km (38 mi) NNE from Main Shock. |
| Main Shock This Earthquake |
M 5.1 |
Nov 6, 2023 10:51 (Santiago Time) | - |
| Aftershock | M 2.8 |
1 hr later Nov 6, 2023 12:15 (Santiago Time) | 5 km (2.9 mi) ENE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 2.6 |
24 hrs later Nov 7, 2023 10:44 (Santiago Time) | 87 km (54 mi) NNE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 2.7 |
1 day later Nov 7, 2023 21:49 (Santiago Time) | 89 km (55 mi) NE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.2 |
2 days later Nov 8, 2023 05:10 (Santiago Time) | 67 km (41 mi) NE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.7 |
2 days later Nov 8, 2023 15:15 (Santiago Time) | 32 km (20 mi) N from Main Shock. |
More earthquakes coming?
The risk of aftershocks decreases rapidly over time. Usually, aftershocks are at least one order of magnitude lower than a main shock.
It's always adviced to be cautious of the risk of a larger shock following any significant earthquake, however this risk is fairly small. There is a roughly 94 percent change that no larger main shock will follow in the days following this earthquake.
Read: How to Stay Safe during an Earthquake (cdc.gov).Earthquakes like this happen often in the region
Earthquakes of this strength are very common in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since July 9th, 2023, when a 5.7 magnitude earthquake hit 152 km (94 mi) further east. An even stronger magnitude 8.3 earthquake struck on September 16th, 2015.
In total, 145 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.1 or higher have been registered within 300km (186 mi) of this epicenter in the past 10 years. This comes down to an average of once every 25 days.
Low tsunami risk
Based on early data it appears this earthquake was not strong enough (lower than MAG-6.5) to be likely to cause destructive tsunami's. However this earthquake appeared to have hit at a shallow depth under sea, so stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.
Tsunami Risk Factors
| Factor | Under Sea? | MAG-6.5 or stronger? | Shallow depth? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Explanation | Almost all tsunami's are caused by earthquakes with their epicenter under sea or very near the sea. However stay cautious in coastal areas as earthquakes on land may cause landslides into sea, potentially still causing a local tsunami. | Under MAG 6.5: Very unlikely to cause a tsunami. MAG 6.5 to 7.5: Destructive tsunami's do occur, but are uncommon. Likely to observe small sea level changes. MAG 7.6+: Earthquakes with these magnitudes might produce destructive tsunami's. |
Most destructive tsunami's are caused by shallow earthquakes with a depth between 0 and 100km under the surface of the earth. Deeper tsunami's are unlikely to displace to ocean floor. |
| This Earthquake | This earthquake appears to have struck under the sea. | Not this earthquake. This earthquake had a magnitude of 5.1. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami. |
This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 31 km (19 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami. |
Sources
Last updated 28/11/23 02:28 (). As more information on this earthquake becomes available this article will be updated. This article is automatically composed based on data originating from multiple sources.
- US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us7000l951
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20231106_0000123
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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