Contact | RSS | EN | DE | EL | ES | FR | IT | RU

Light mag. 4.2 earthquake - 80 km west of Abra Pampa, Departamento de Cochinoca, Jujuy, Argentina, on Tuesday, Jan 19, 2021 at 8:56 pm (GMT -3)

Light magnitude 4.2 earthquake at 279 km depth

20 Jan 00:21 UTC: First to report: USGS after 25 minutes.

Update Wed, 20 Jan 2021, 00:27

Magnitude 4.2 earthquake strikes near Abra Pampa, Departamento de Cochinoca, Jujuy, Argentina

4.2 quake 19 Jan 8:56 pm (GMT -3)

A intermediate to deep magnitude 4.2 earthquake was reported in the evening near Abra Pampa, Departamento de Cochinoca, Jujuy, Argentina.
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the quake hit on Tuesday 19 January 2021 at 8:56 pm local time at an intermediate to considerable depth of 279.3 km. The strength of the earthquake may have been tempered by its relative great depth below the surface, which makes it feel weaker in absolute terms. Magnitude and other quake parameters can still change in the coming hours as the agency continues to process seismic data.
A second report was later issued by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), which listed it as a magnitude 4.2 earthquake as well.
According to preliminary calculations, we do not expect that the quake was felt by many people and did not cause any damage. In Abra Pampa (pop. 9,400, 80 km away), and El Aguilar (pop. 3,700, 82 km away), the quake was probably not felt.

Download the Volcanoes & Earthquakes app and get one of the fastest seismic alerts online: Android | iOS

Earthquake details

Date & time	Jan 19, 2021 23:56:59 UTC
Local time at epicenter	Tuesday, Jan 19, 2021 at 8:56 pm (GMT -3)
Status	Confirmed
Magnitude	4.2
Depth	279.3 km
Epicenter latitude / longitude	22.9626°S / 66.429°W (Departamento de Susques, Jujuy, Argentina)
Antipode	22.963°N / 113.571°E
Shaking intensity	Not felt
Felt
Primary data source	USGS (United States Geological Survey)
Nearest volcano	Uturuncu (109 km / 68 mi)
Nearby towns and cities	80 km (50 mi) WSW of Abra Pampa (Cochinoca) (pop: 9,430) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 82 km (51 mi) WNW of El Aguilar (pop: 3,660) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 130 km (81 mi) SW of Villazon (Modesto Omiste, Potosí, Bolivia) (pop: 30,300) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 179 km (111 mi) NW of Jujuy (pop: 305,900) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 190 km (118 mi) NW of Palpala (pop: 48,200) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 192 km (119 mi) WNW of Libertador General San Martin (pop: 49,300) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 213 km (132 mi) NW of San Pedro de Jujuy (pop: 58,400) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 216 km (134 mi) W of Oran (Salta) (pop: 74,100) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 228 km (141 mi) NNW of Salta (pop: 512,700) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 274 km (170 mi) W of Tartagal (Salta) (pop: 60,800) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby
Weather at epicenter at time of quake	Broken Clouds 3.6°C (39 F), humidity: 91%, wind: 3 m/s (6 kts) from NE
Estimated seismic energy released	1.3 x 10¹¹ joules (35 megawatt hours, equivalent to 30.1 tons of TNT) \| about seismic energy

Show interactive Map

[smaller] [bigger]

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
4.2	279 km	79 Km WSW of Abra Pampa, Argentina	USGS
4.2	279 km	JUJUY, ARGENTINA	EMSC

Most recent quakes Top 20 past 24 hrs Quakes in Bolivia

Seismograms

Seismic station: Las Campanas Astronomical Observatory, Chile (LCO/IU network) | Distance from quake: 796 km / 495 mi | Show on map | Station Info

Seismic station Las Campanas Astronomical Observatory, Chile: vertical movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismogram (vertical component) around time of quake. Thin dotted red line indicates time of quake. Seismic waves arrive some time later, depending on distance. Source: IRIS Buffer of Uniform Data (BUD) webtool

User reports for this quake

User reports estimate the perceived ground shaking intensity according to the MMI (Modified Mercalli Intensity) scale.

There are no user reports for this quake.

Earlier earthquakes in the same area

Click here to search our database for earlier earthquakes in the same area since 1900!

Try our free app!

Android | iOS version

Why is there advertising on this site?

Support us - Help us upgrade our services!

We truly love working to bring you the latest volcano and earthquake data from around the world. Maintaining our website and our free apps does require, however, considerable time and resources.
We need financing to increase hard- and software capacity as well as support our editor team. We're aiming to achieve uninterrupted service wherever an earthquake or volcano eruption unfolds, and your donations can make it happen! Every donation will be highly appreciated. If you find the information useful and would like to support our team in integrating further features, write great content, and in upgrading our soft- and hardware, please make a donation (PayPal or Online credit card payment).

Planned features:

Improved multilanguage support
Tsunami alerts
Faster responsiveness

Thanks to your past donations, these features have been added recently:

Design upgrade
Detailed quake stats
Additional seismic data sources

Download and Upgrade the Volcanoes & Earthquakes app to get one of the fastest seismic and volcano alerts online:
Android | IOS

Thank you!

Sources: VolcanoDiscovery / VolcanoAdventures and other sources as noted.
Use of material: Most text and images on our websites are owned by us. Re-use is generally not permitted without authorization. Contact us for licensing rights.

Volcanoes & Earthquakes