M6.7 Earthquake near West Chile Rise — February 3, 2021
2021-02-03 05:23:43 UTC (2021-02-03) · approx. 10:23 PM UTC-7 local
Felt by 13 people across nearby locations. 0
On February 3, 2021 at 05:23 UTC, a magnitude 6.7 shallow crustal earthquake struck near West Chile Rise, at a depth of 10.0 km and coordinates -36.2797°, -97.8000°.0 The USGS PAGER system issued a green alert level for this event, indicating no significant casualties or damage expected.
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 6.7 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 169 kilotons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 25 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
The epicenter is located in Chile, a region characterized by the Peru-Chile Trench, where the Nazca Plate subducts beneath South America at 65-80 mm per year. The nearest mapped fault system is the Peru-Chile Trench. View all earthquakes in Chile.
Learn more: Magnitude scale · Aftershock sequences
ShakeMap — predicted shaking intensity
Modeled ground-motion intensity contoured on the Modified Mercalli scale (MMI). Computed by the USGS from the moment-tensor solution and regional ground-motion prediction equations.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey ShakeMap. View interactive ShakeMap on USGS
Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking
Aggregated felt-report intensity from 13 citizen responses to the USGS Did You Feel It? system. Each colored zone represents the average MMI from reports in that area.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey Did You Feel It?. View on USGS · submit your own report
Earthquake Details
-97.8000°E
Technical Information
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 6.7 earthquake near West Chile Rise?
The magnitude 6.7 earthquake that struck near West Chile Rise on February 3, 2021 at 05:23 UTC had a depth of 10.0 km. For context, this was a strong earthquake capable of causing significant damage.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at -36.2797°, -97.8000°, which is near West Chile Rise. View all earthquakes in Chile.
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 6.7 earthquakes can continue for weeks to months and gradually diminish over time.
Has Chile had earthquakes this big before?
The largest recorded earthquake in Chile was the M9.5 Great Chilean earthquake of May 22, 1960. Today's magnitude 6.7 event is significantly smaller than that historical record.
Actions
Location
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us6000de34). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2021, February 3, 2021). M6.7 Earthquake near West Chile Rise — February 3, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us6000de34/