5.3

M5.3 Earthquake near West Chile Rise — December 4, 2024

2024-12-04 07:11:47 UTC (2024-12-04) · approx. 2:11 AM UTC-5 local

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MagnitudeM5.3(mww)
Time07:11 UTC≈ 2:11 AM UTC-5
Depth10.0 kmshallow crustal
Coordinates-43.852°, -81.831°
Felt byNo felt reports
Status✓ Reviewed by USGS· green PAGER
green Alert— no significant casualties or damage expected

On December 4, 2024 at 07:11 UTC, a magnitude 5.3 shallow crustal earthquake struck near West Chile Rise, at a depth of 10.0 km and coordinates -43.8524°, -81.8305°. The USGS PAGER system issued a green alert level for this event, indicating no significant casualties or damage expected. This earthquake was detected by 93 seismic stations with excellent location accuracy and was assigned a USGS significance rating of 432, placing it among routine seismic activity.

Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 5.3 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 1 kilotons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 2.7 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

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Map showing earthquake epicenter at -43.85°, -81.83°

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.

USGS ShakeMap intensity contours for the M5.3 earthquake near West Chile Rise

Source: U.S. Geological Survey ShakeMap. View interactive ShakeMap on USGS

Earthquake Details

Magnitude
5.3 mww
Depth
10.0 km
shallow crustal
Location
-43.8524°N
-81.8305°E
Intensity (MMI)
0.0
weak

Technical Information

Event ID
us7000nvts
Event Type
earthquake
Status
✓ Reviewed
Significance
432
Stations Used
93
Azimuthal Gap
73.0°
Min Station Distance
6.089°
RMS Residual
1.14 sec
Last Updated
2025-02-15 18:29:24 UTC

Common Questions

How strong was the magnitude 5.3 earthquake near West Chile Rise?

The magnitude 5.3 earthquake that struck near West Chile Rise on December 4, 2024 at 07:11 UTC had a depth of 10.0 km. For context, this was a moderate earthquake that could be widely felt.

Where did the earthquake occur?

The earthquake epicenter was located at -43.8524°, -81.8305°, 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 5.3 earthquakes can continue for days to weeks 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 5.3 event is significantly smaller than that historical record.

Actions

View on USGSDid You Feel It?

Location

Chile
View all Chile earthquakes

Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us7000nvts). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.

Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2024, December 4, 2024). M5.3 Earthquake near West Chile Rise — December 4, 2024. Retrieved February 15, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us7000nvts/