M 8.2 earthquake – 121 km SSE of San Pedro de Atacama, Chile

Dec 9, 1950 · 21:38 UTC · Dec 9, 1950
Local time: Dec 9, 1950 · 17:38 (UTC-4)

GreatIntermediate · 114 km Reviewed by a seismologist

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Magnitude: 8.2moment magnitude (mw)
Depth: 114 kmIntermediate earthquake
Epicenter: -23.977, -67.912198 km from Calama
Energy released: 30 megatons of TNTabout 2,006 × Hiroshima
Felt reports: —"Did You Feel It?" responses
Shaking intensity: 7.1max. instrumental (MMI)
Aftershocks: 0M2.5+ within 375 km
Significance: 1,034USGS score, 0–1,000+

The strongest within 300 km on record

No earthquake this strong has been recorded this close since our catalog begins in 1900.

How strong was it?

Great earthquake. It released 30 megatons of TNT, 63,096 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0. Bars use the magnitude scale: every step is about 32 times more energy.

Chile 1960 M 9.5

Japan 2011 M 9.1

This earthquake M 8.2

San Francisco 1906 M 7.9

Turkey 2023 M 7.8

Haiti 2010 M 7.0

Northridge 1994 M 6.7

The strongest earthquakes within 300 km

Since 1900, around Chile.