In the South Pacific Ocean 141 kilometer from Copiapó, Chile, a shallow and significant Magnitude 5.1 foreshock occurred in the morning of Thursday June 11th, 2026.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the South Pacific Ocean, 62 kilometers (38 mi) off the coast of Chile, 141 kilometer west of Copiapó in Atacama. 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: | Jun 11, 2026 08:06 (Santiago Time) - Jun 11, 2026 12:06 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 141 km west of Copiapó, Atacama, Chile. Coordinates 27°48'55"S 71°40'28"W. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 5.1 Detected by 20 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.069 . |
| 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 Chile . Vallenar in Atacama, Chile is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 123 kilometer (76 mi) northwest of Vallenar.
Major cities near this earthquake: Copiapó is located 141 km to the east. Coquimbo is located 240 km to the south. La Serena is located 236 km to the south.
The table below provides an overview of all places in proximity of today's earthquake.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 123 km (76 mi) SE from epicenter |
Vallenar Atacama, Chile. |
| 141 km (88 mi) E from epicenter |
Copiapó Atacama, Chile. |
| 226 km (140 mi) NE from epicenter |
Diego de Almagro Atacama, Chile. |
| 236 km (147 mi) S from epicenter |
La Serena Coquimbo Region, Chile. |
| 240 km (149 mi) S from epicenter |
Coquimbo Coquimbo Region, Chile. |
This is likely a foreshock
This earthquake was followed by a stronger MAG-5.5 earthquake, classifying this earthquake as a foreshock.
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
| Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreshock | M 5.2 |
7 hrs earlier Jun 11, 2026 01:19 (Santiago Time) | 12 km (8 mi) E from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 4.3 |
6 hrs earlier Jun 11, 2026 02:05 (Santiago Time) | 13 km (8 mi) E from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 2.5 |
6 hrs earlier Jun 11, 2026 02:32 (Santiago Time) | 18 km (11 mi) SE from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 3.0 |
5 hrs earlier Jun 11, 2026 03:43 (Santiago Time) | 20 km (13 mi) SE from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 3.8 |
4 hrs earlier Jun 11, 2026 04:28 (Santiago Time) | 26 km (16 mi) SE from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 4.1 |
4 hrs earlier Jun 11, 2026 04:32 (Santiago Time) | 27 km (17 mi) SE from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 3.0 |
54 mins earlier Jun 11, 2026 07:27 (Santiago Time) | 28 km (17 mi) E from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 3.0 |
52 mins earlier Jun 11, 2026 07:30 (Santiago Time) | 22 km (14 mi) E from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 4.5 |
20 mins earlier Jun 11, 2026 08:02 (Santiago Time) | 14 km (9 mi) NE from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock This Earthquake |
M 5.1 |
16 mins earlier Jun 11, 2026 08:06 (Santiago Time) | 7 km (4 mi) E from Main Shock. |
| Main Shock | M 5.5 |
Jun 11, 2026 08:22 (Santiago Time) | - |
| Aftershock | M 3.4 |
22 mins later Jun 11, 2026 08:44 (Santiago Time) | 19 km (12 mi) SE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.2 |
33 mins later Jun 11, 2026 08:54 (Santiago Time) | 26 km (16 mi) E from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.5 |
2 hrs later Jun 11, 2026 10:02 (Santiago Time) | 22 km (14 mi) SE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.6 |
4 hrs later Jun 11, 2026 12:11 (Santiago Time) | 23 km (14 mi) E from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.5 |
4 hrs later Jun 11, 2026 12:41 (Santiago Time) | 12 km (7 mi) E from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.8 |
5 hrs later Jun 11, 2026 13:18 (Santiago Time) | 26 km (16 mi) SE 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.
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 June 11th, 2026, when a 5.2 magnitude earthquake hit 6 km (4 mi) further east. An even stronger magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck on September 1st, 2020.
In total, 70 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 2 months.
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 10 km (6 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami. |
Sources
Last updated 11/06/26 18:28 (). This article contains currently available information about the earthquake and is automatically composed. We continue to update this article up to a few days after the earthquake occurred.
- US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us7000ss7x
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20260611_0000215
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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