Written by on . Last updated November 2nd, 2024.

In the North Pacific Ocean 285 kilometer from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, a shallow and significant Magnitude 5.2 foreshock occurred in the evening of Tuesday October 15th, 2024.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the North Pacific Ocean, 211 kilometers (131 mi) off the coast of Mexico, 285 kilometer south-southwest of Puerto Vallarta in Jalisco. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 10 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time: Oct 15, 2024 18:49 (Mexico City Time)
- Oct 15, 2024 23:49 Universal Time.
Location: 285 km SSW of Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico.
Coordinates 18°28'47"N 106°44'12"W.
Map: Map of area around epicenter.
Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude: MAG 5.2
Detected by 31 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.056 .
Depth: 10 km (6 mi)
A very 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 may have been felt in Mexico . Located 244 kilometer (152 mi) west-southwest of the epicenter of this earthquake, Cihuatlán (Jalisco, Mexico) is the nearest significant population center.

The table below provides an overview of all places in proximity of today's earthquake.

Overview of nearby places

Distance Place
244 km (152 mi)
ENE from epicenter
Cihuatlán

Jalisco, Mexico.
262 km (163 mi)
ENE from epicenter
Manzanillo

Colima, Mexico.
285 km (177 mi)
NNE from epicenter
Puerto Vallarta

Jalisco, Mexico.
287 km (178 mi)
ENE from epicenter
Autlán de Navarro

Jalisco, Mexico.
293 km (182 mi)
NNE from epicenter
Mezcales

Nayarit, Mexico.
296 km (184 mi)
NNE from epicenter
Ixtapa

Jalisco, Mexico.
296 km (184 mi)
E from epicenter
Ciudad de Armería

Colima, Mexico.
299 km (186 mi)
NNE from epicenter
San José del Valle

Jalisco, Mexico.
Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.

Shaking reported by 2 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 2 people have reported shaking in 2 places in Mexico.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

  • Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico: 1 person.
  • Tlalnepantla, México, Mexico: 1 person.

This is likely a foreshock

This earthquake was followed by a stronger MAG-5.9 earthquake, classifying this earthquake as a foreshock.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

Classification Magnitude When Where
Foreshock
This Earthquake
M 5.2 20 hrs earlier
Oct 15, 2024 18:49 (Mexico City Time)
19 km (11 mi)
E from Main Shock.
Main Shock M 5.9 Oct 16, 2024 14:40
(Mexico City Time)
-
Aftershock M 3.8 20 mins later
Oct 16, 2024 15:01 (Mexico City Time)
29 km (18 mi)
ENE from Main Shock.
Aftershock M 3.7 2 hrs later
Oct 16, 2024 16:11 (Mexico City Time)
21 km (13 mi)
NE from Main Shock.
Aftershock M 3.7 2 hrs later
Oct 16, 2024 16:20 (Mexico City Time)
18 km (11 mi)
NNE from Main Shock.
Detected MAG2.5+ earthquakes within within 100km (62 mi), that occurred in the three days before and after the main shock.

More earthquakes coming?

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.

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 April 21st, 2024, when a 5.4 magnitude earthquake hit 119 km (74 mi) further east. An even stronger magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck on January 21st, 2016.

In total, 28 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.2 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 4 months.

Low tsunami risk

DISCLAIMER: We strongly suggest to closely monitor advice from local authorities with regards to tsunami risks. Our analysis is based on automatically collected data from external sources, and these might contain mistakes. In addition, earthquakes can cause landslides that may lead to a tsunami, or be a followed by another, potentially stonger, earthquake.

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 5.2. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.
This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 10 km (6 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 02/11/24 01:48 (). 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.

  1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000nyxu
  2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20241015_0000258
  3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
  4. Google Maps: Static API
  5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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