Deep in the night of Sunday November 12th, 2023, a Magnitude 4.5 earthquake hit in the South Pacific Ocean 87 kilometer from Guayaquil, Ecuador. Peru is also near its epicenter.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the South Pacific Ocean, right off the coast of Ecuador (2 mi offshore), 87 kilometer west-southwest of Guayaquil in Guayas. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 38 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.
| Date and Time: | Nov 12, 2023 03:26 (Guayaquil Time) - Nov 12, 2023 08:26 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 87 km WSW of Guayaquil, Guayas, Ecuador. Coordinates 2°31'8"S 80°36'5"W. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 4.5 Detected by 29 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.101 . |
| Depth: | 38 km (24 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
This earthquake struck within proximity of multiple countries. Ecuador and Peru are both within 300km distance of its epicenter.
Located 27 kilometer (17 mi) west-northwest of the epicenter of this earthquake, Playas (Guayas, Ecuador) is the nearest significant population center.
Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. Guayaquil is located 87 km to the east-northeast. Eloy Alfaro is located 91 km to the east-northeast. Machala is located 109 km to the south-east.
The table below provides an overview of all places in proximity of today's earthquake.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 27 km (17 mi) ESE from epicenter |
Playas Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 43 km (27 mi) NW from epicenter |
Santa Elena Santa Elena, Ecuador. |
| 47 km (29 mi) NW from epicenter |
La Libertad Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 52 km (32 mi) NW from epicenter |
Salinas Santa Elena, Ecuador. |
| 87 km (54 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Guayaquil Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 88 km (55 mi) NNE from epicenter |
Pedro Carbo Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 91 km (57 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Eloy Alfaro Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 96 km (60 mi) NE from epicenter |
El Triunfo Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 109 km (68 mi) SE from epicenter |
Machala El Oro, Ecuador. |
| 111 km (69 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Yaguachi Nuevo Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 111 km (69 mi) E from epicenter |
Naranjal Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 114 km (71 mi) SSE from epicenter |
Huaquillas El Oro, Ecuador. |
| 115 km (71 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Samborondón Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 115 km (71 mi) SSE from epicenter |
Zarumilla Tumbes, Peru. |
| 118 km (73 mi) S from epicenter |
Tumbes Tumbes, Peru. |
| 120 km (75 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Milagro Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 126 km (78 mi) SE from epicenter |
Pasaje El Oro, Ecuador. |
| 126 km (78 mi) SE from epicenter |
Santa Rosa El Oro, Ecuador. |
| 130 km (81 mi) N from epicenter |
Jipijapa Manabí, Ecuador. |
| 132 km (82 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Naranjito Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 139 km (86 mi) N from epicenter |
Sucre Manabí, Ecuador. |
| 141 km (88 mi) E from epicenter |
La Troncal Cañar, Ecuador. |
| 143 km (89 mi) NE from epicenter |
Vinces Los Ríos, Ecuador. |
| 143 km (89 mi) NE from epicenter |
Babahoyo Los Ríos, Ecuador. |
| 150 km (93 mi) NNE from epicenter |
Balzar Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 164 km (102 mi) N from epicenter |
Portoviejo Manabí, Ecuador. |
| 164 km (102 mi) N from epicenter |
Montecristi Manabí, Ecuador. |
| 165 km (103 mi) SE from epicenter |
Piñas El Oro, Ecuador. |
| 167 km (104 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Montalvo Los Ríos, Ecuador. |
| 174 km (108 mi) N from epicenter |
Manta Manabí, Ecuador. |
| 175 km (109 mi) NE from epicenter |
Ventanas Los Ríos, Ecuador. |
| 182 km (113 mi) ESE from epicenter |
Cuenca Azuay, Ecuador. |
| 192 km (119 mi) NNE from epicenter |
Calceta Manabí, Ecuador. |
| 196 km (122 mi) NNE from epicenter |
Velasco Ibarra Guayas, Ecuador. |
| 196 km (122 mi) S from epicenter |
La Breita Piura, Peru. |
| 196 km (122 mi) E from epicenter |
Azogues Cañar, Ecuador. |
| 206 km (128 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Guaranda Bolívar, Ecuador. |
| 208 km (129 mi) NE from epicenter |
Quevedo Los Ríos, Ecuador. |
| 210 km (130 mi) NNE from epicenter |
Chone Manabí, Ecuador. |
| 215 km (134 mi) N from epicenter |
Bahía de Caráquez Manabí, Ecuador. |
| 226 km (140 mi) SE from epicenter |
Loja Loja, Ecuador. |
| 237 km (147 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Riobamba Chimborazo, Ecuador. |
| 241 km (150 mi) SSW from epicenter |
Talara Piura, Peru. |
| 251 km (156 mi) SE from epicenter |
Zamora Zamora-Chinchipe, Ecuador. |
| 262 km (163 mi) ENE from epicenter |
Ambato Tungurahua, Ecuador. |
| 265 km (165 mi) S from epicenter |
Sullana Piura, Peru. |
| 278 km (173 mi) E from epicenter |
Macas Morona-Santiago, Ecuador. |
| 282 km (175 mi) NE from epicenter |
Latacunga Cotopaxi, Ecuador. |
| 290 km (180 mi) S from epicenter |
Chulucanas Piura, Peru. |
| 291 km (181 mi) S from epicenter |
Paita Piura, Peru. |
| 297 km (185 mi) S from epicenter |
San Martin Piura, Peru. |
| 298 km (185 mi) NNE from epicenter |
Santo Domingo de los Colorados Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, Ecuador. |
| 298 km (185 mi) S from epicenter |
Piura Piura, Peru. |
Shaking reported by 1 person
People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 1 person has reported shaking in one place in Ecuador.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.
Places with most reports:
- Manta, Manabí, Ecuador: 1 person.
Risk of aftershocks?
We monitor for foreshocks or aftershocks that have a magnitude of 2.5+ and occur within 100km (62 mi) of the epicenter of this earthquake. So far no such earthquakes have been detected.
Earthquakes can create aftershocks. These are generally at least 1 magnitude lower than any main shock, and as time passes the chance and strength of aftershocks decreases.
In only six percent of cases, significant earthquakes are followed by a larger main shock, making the current earthquake a foreshock. While the chance of this happening is not so large, it is adviced to maintain cautiousness in the hours and days following a major 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 November 7th, 2023, when a 5 magnitude earthquake hit 234 km (146 mi) further north-east. An even stronger magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck on March 18th, 2023.
In total, 221 earthquakes with a magnitude of 4.5 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 17 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 4.5. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami. |
This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 38 km (24 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami. |
Sources
Last updated 08/12/23 01:18 (). This article is automatically generated based on available data. We keep checking multiple sources for additional information. This article gets updated as new details on this earthquake become available.
- US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us7000lagc
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20231112_0000072
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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