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Puente Alto, Provincia de Cordillera, Santiago Metropolitan (334.1 km SSE of epicenter) [Map] / not felt : No lo percibí desde Santiago (reported through our app)
Panguipulli / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / 2-5 s
Moderate mag. 4.6 earthquake - 40 km west of Ovalle, Provincia de Limari, Coquimbo Region, Chile, on Sunday, Dec 27, 2020 at 5:48 pm (GMT -3)
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Moderate magnitude 4.6 earthquake at 35 km depth
27 Dec 21:05 UTC: First to report: EMSC after 17 minutes.
27 Dec 21:09: Magnitude recalculated from 4.4 to 4.8. Epicenter location corrected by 15 km (9.6 mi) towards W.
27 Dec 23:46: Magnitude recalculated from 4.4 to 4.6. Hypocenter depth recalculated from 43.5 to 34.7 km (from 27 to 22 mi). Epicenter location corrected by 8.7 km (5.4 mi) towards E.
27 Dec 21:09: Magnitude recalculated from 4.4 to 4.8. Epicenter location corrected by 15 km (9.6 mi) towards W.
27 Dec 23:46: Magnitude recalculated from 4.4 to 4.6. Hypocenter depth recalculated from 43.5 to 34.7 km (from 27 to 22 mi). Epicenter location corrected by 8.7 km (5.4 mi) towards E.
Update Sun, 27 Dec 2020, 21:09
Light magnitude 4.4 quake hits 41 km southwest of Ovalle, Chile in the afternoon 4.4 quake 27 Dec 5:48 pm (GMT -3)
An earthquake of magnitude 4.4 occurred in the afternoon on Sunday 27 December 2020 at 5:48 pm local time near Ovalle, Provincia de Limarí, Coquimbo Region, Chile, as reported by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC).
According to preliminary data, the quake was located at a moderately shallow depth of 34 km. The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.
Our monitoring service identified a second report from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) which listed the quake at magnitude 4.8.
Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should not have caused any significant damage, but was probably felt by many people as light vibration in the area of the epicenter.
Weak shaking might have been felt in Ovalle (pop. 77,100) located 41 km from the epicenter.
Other towns or cities near the epicenter where the quake might have been felt as very weak shaking include Monte Patria (pop. 13,900) located 62 km from the epicenter, Coquimbo (pop. 161,300) 87 km away, and La Serena (pop. 154,500) 95 km away.
VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant news about the quake become available. If you're in the area, please send us your experience through our reporting mechanism, either online or via our mobile app. This will help us provide more first-hand updates to anyone around the globe who wants to know more about this quake.
According to preliminary data, the quake was located at a moderately shallow depth of 34 km. The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.
Our monitoring service identified a second report from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) which listed the quake at magnitude 4.8.
Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should not have caused any significant damage, but was probably felt by many people as light vibration in the area of the epicenter.
Weak shaking might have been felt in Ovalle (pop. 77,100) located 41 km from the epicenter.
Other towns or cities near the epicenter where the quake might have been felt as very weak shaking include Monte Patria (pop. 13,900) located 62 km from the epicenter, Coquimbo (pop. 161,300) 87 km away, and La Serena (pop. 154,500) 95 km away.
VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant news about the quake become available. If you're in the area, please send us your experience through our reporting mechanism, either online or via our mobile app. This will help us provide more first-hand updates to anyone around the globe who wants to know more about this quake.
Earthquake data
Earthquake details
| Date & time | Dec 27, 2020 20:48:35 UTC |
| Local time at epicenter | Sunday, Dec 27, 2020 at 5:48 pm (GMT -3) |
| Status | Confirmed |
| Magnitude | 4.6 |
| Depth | 34.7 km |
| Epicenter latitude / longitude | 30.712°S / 71.593°W  (Provincia de Limari, Coquimbo Region, Chile) |
| Antipode | 30.712°N / 108.407°E |
| Shaking intensity | Moderate shaking |
| Felt | 1 report |
| Primary data source | GUG (U. Chile) |
| Nearby towns and cities | 40 km (25 mi) WSW of Ovalle (pop: 77,100) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 61 km (38 mi) W of Monte Patria (pop: 13,900) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 88 km (55 mi) SSW of Coquimbo (pop: 161,300) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 96 km (59 mi) SSW of La Serena (pop: 154,500) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 110 km (68 mi) NNW of Illapel (Choapa) (pop: 22,800) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 257 km (160 mi) N of Viña del Mar (Valparaíso) (pop: 294,600) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 259 km (161 mi) N of Valparaiso (Valparaíso) (pop: 282,400) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 318 km (198 mi) NNW of Santiago de Chile (Metropolitana) (pop: 4,837,300) | Show on map | Quakes nearby 336 km (209 mi) NNW of Puente Alto (Metropolitana) (pop: 510,400) | Show on map | Quakes nearby |
| Weather at epicenter at time of quake | Few Clouds  15.8°C (60 F), humidity: 76%, wind: 4 m/s (8 kts) from SSW |
| Estimated seismic energy released | 5 x 1011 joules (139 megawatt hours, equivalent to 120 tons of TNT) | about seismic energy |
Data for the same earthquake reported by different agencies
Info: The more agencies report about the same quake and post similar data, the more confidence you can have in the data. It takes normally up to a few hours until earthquake parameters are calculated with near-optimum precision.
| Mag. | Depth | Location | Source |
| 4.6 | 35 km | 35 Km Al O De Punitaqui, Chile | GUG (U. Chile) |
| 4.8 | 34 km | 55 Km W of Ovalle, Chile | USGS |
| 4.7 | 35 km | OFFSHORE COQUIMBO, CHILE | EMSC |
User reports for this quake (2)
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