Moderate mag. 4.6 earthquake - North Pacific Ocean, 83 km south of San Jose, Guatemala, on Sunday, 3 Jan 2021 7:22 am (GMT -6) -
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Moderate magnitude 4.6 earthquake at 10 km depth
3 Jan 13:31 UTC: First to report: GFZ after 9 minutes.
Update Sun, 3 Jan 2021, 13:36
Light 4.6 quake hits near Puerto San José, Municipio de San José, Departamento de Escuintla, Guatemala4.6 quake 3 Jan 7:22 am (GMT -6)
A shallow magnitude 4.6 earthquake was reported in the morning near Puerto San José, Municipio de San José, Departamento de Escuintla, Guatemala.
According to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), the quake hit on Sunday 3 January 2021 at 7:22 am local time at a shallow depth of 10 km. Shallow earthquakes are felt more strongly than deeper ones as they are closer to the surface. 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 Nicaraguan Institute of Territorial Studies (INETER) which listed the quake at magnitude 4.7. A third agency, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), reported the same quake at magnitude 4.6.
Towns or cities near the epicenter where the quake might have been felt as very weak shaking include Puerto San José (pop. 18,700) located 83 km from the epicenter, Iztapa (pop. 4,000) 87 km away, and La Gomera (pop. 24,000) 98 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 the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), the quake hit on Sunday 3 January 2021 at 7:22 am local time at a shallow depth of 10 km. Shallow earthquakes are felt more strongly than deeper ones as they are closer to the surface. 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 Nicaraguan Institute of Territorial Studies (INETER) which listed the quake at magnitude 4.7. A third agency, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), reported the same quake at magnitude 4.6.
Towns or cities near the epicenter where the quake might have been felt as very weak shaking include Puerto San José (pop. 18,700) located 83 km from the epicenter, Iztapa (pop. 4,000) 87 km away, and La Gomera (pop. 24,000) 98 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:
Date & time: 3 Jan 2021 13:22:18 UTC -
Local time at epicenter: Sunday, 3 Jan 2021 7:22 am (GMT -6)
Magnitude: 4.6
Depth: 10.0 km
Epicenter latitude / longitude: 13.2°N / 91°W

Nearest volcano: Tecuamburro (124 km / 77 mi)
Nearby towns and cities:
83 km (52 mi) SSW of San Jose (Municipio de San José) (pop: 18,700) --> See nearby quakes!
98 km (61 mi) S of La Gomera (pop: 24,000) --> See nearby quakes!
125 km (77 mi) S of Escuintla (pop: 103,200) --> See nearby quakes!
151 km (94 mi) SSW of Villa Canales (pop: 122,200) --> See nearby quakes!
152 km (95 mi) SSW of Petapa (pop: 141,500) --> See nearby quakes!
164 km (102 mi) S of Chimaltenango (pop: 82,400) --> See nearby quakes!
165 km (102 mi) SSW of Mixco (pop: 473,100) --> See nearby quakes!
169 km (105 mi) SSW of Guatemala City (pop: 994,900) --> See nearby quakes!
190 km (118 mi) SSE of Quetzaltenango (pop: 132,200) --> See nearby quakes!
204 km (126 mi) WSW of San Salvador (El Salvador) (pop: 526,000) --> See nearby quakes!
Weather at epicenter at time of quake:
Scattered Clouds
27.7°C (82 F), humidity: 76%, wind: 5 m/s (9 kts) from N
Primary data source: GFZ (German Research Centre for Geosciences)Scattered Clouds

Estimated released energy: 5 x 1011 joules (139 megawatt hours, equivalent to 120 tons of TNT) More info
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.
Magnitude | Depth | Location | Source |
M 4.6 | 10 km | - 71 km S of Puerto San José, Guatemala | GFZ |
M 4.7 | 30 km | OFFSHORE GUATEMALA | EMSC |
M 4.7 | 26 km | 83 Km Al Sur De Izatapa, Guatemala | INETER |
M 4.7 | 39 km | 64 Km S of Puerto San José, Guatemala | USGS |
M 4.7 | 39 km | 64 Km S of Puerto San José, Guatemala | USGS |
User reports for this quake (1)
User reports estimate the perceived ground shaking intensity according to the MMI (Modified Mercalli Intensity) scale.
174.5 km NNE of epicenter [Map] / not felt (reported through our app)
Earlier earthquakes in the same area since 1900
- Date / time UTC| Mag |Depth|Age|Distance| Details
- 06 Aug 1942 23:37| 7.7 |35km / 22mi|79 years ago|75km / 47mi| North Pacific Ocean, 26 km S of La Gomera, Escuintla, Guatemala
- 19 Apr 1902 02:23| 7.5 |unknown|119 years ago|89km / 55mi| 10.8 km SE of La Gomera, Escuintla, Guatemala
- 07 Nov 2012 16:35| 7.4 |24km / 15mi|8 years ago|136km / 85mi| North Pacific Ocean, 35 km S of Champerico, Guatemala
- 19 Jun 1982 06:21| 7.3 |73km / 45mi|39 years ago|175km / 109mi| North Pacific Ocean, 45 km SW of San Salvador, El Salvador
- 29 Apr 1970 14:01| 7.3 |35km / 22mi|51 years ago|231km / 144mi| North Pacific Ocean, 60 km SW of Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico
- 14 Dec 1935 22:05| 7.3 |35km / 22mi|85 years ago|225km / 140mi| Puerto Madero, 4.6 km E of Puerto Madero, Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico
- 10 Sep 1993 19:12| 7.2 |34km / 21mi|28 years ago|245km / 152mi| North Pacific Ocean, 47 km SW of Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico
- 23 Oct 1950 16:13| 7.2 |65km / 41mi|70 years ago|158km / 98mi| 1.9 km N of Champerico, Departamento de Retalhuleu, Guatemala
- 02 Dec 1983 03:09| 7.0 |67km / 42mi|37 years ago|139km / 86mi| North Pacific Ocean, 71 km S of Coatepeque, Guatemala
- 28 Jun 1944 07:58| 7.0 |25km / 16mi|77 years ago|239km / 149mi| North Pacific Ocean, 95 km SW of Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico
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