Moderate mag. 4.7 earthquake - North Pacific Ocean, 77 km southwest of Retalhuleu, Guatemala, on Tuesday, Mar 23, 2021 at 6:40 pm (GMT -6) -
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Moderate magnitude 4.7 earthquake at 23 km depth
24 Mar 00:49 UTC: First to report: GFZ after 9 minutes.
24 Mar 10:32: Magnitude recalculated from 4.8 to 4.7. Epicenter location corrected by 9.5 km (5.9 mi) towards NE.
24 Mar 10:34: Hypocenter depth recalculated from 10.0 to 23.0 km (from 6.2 to 14.3 mi). Epicenter location corrected by 20 km (13 mi) towards SE.
24 Mar 10:32: Magnitude recalculated from 4.8 to 4.7. Epicenter location corrected by 9.5 km (5.9 mi) towards NE.
24 Mar 10:34: Hypocenter depth recalculated from 10.0 to 23.0 km (from 6.2 to 14.3 mi). Epicenter location corrected by 20 km (13 mi) towards SE.
Update Wed, 24 Mar 2021, 00:54
Moderate 4.8 quake hits near Retalhuleu, Municipio de Retalhuleu, Departamento de Retalhuleu, Guatemala4.8 quake 23 Mar 6:40 pm (GMT -6)
A shallow magnitude 4.8 earthquake was reported early evening near Retalhuleu, Municipio de Retalhuleu, Departamento de Retalhuleu, Guatemala.
According to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), the quake hit on Tuesday 23 March 2021 at 6:40 pm 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.
A second report was later issued by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), which listed it as a magnitude 4.8 earthquake as well.
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 Ocos (pop. 9,500) located 44 km from the epicenter, Champerico (pop. 7,800) 61 km away, Ciudad Tecun Uman (pop. 11,400) 62 km away, Tapachula (pop. 202,700) 79 km away, Flores Costa Cuca (pop. 12,000) 80 km away, Coatepeque (pop. 45,700) 85 km away, Retalhuleu (pop. 36,700) 92 km away, and Nuevo San Carlos (pop. 19,200) 93 km away.
Other towns or cities near the epicenter where the quake might have been felt as very weak shaking include Colomba (pop. 19,100) located 96 km from the epicenter.
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 Tuesday 23 March 2021 at 6:40 pm 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.
A second report was later issued by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), which listed it as a magnitude 4.8 earthquake as well.
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 Ocos (pop. 9,500) located 44 km from the epicenter, Champerico (pop. 7,800) 61 km away, Ciudad Tecun Uman (pop. 11,400) 62 km away, Tapachula (pop. 202,700) 79 km away, Flores Costa Cuca (pop. 12,000) 80 km away, Coatepeque (pop. 45,700) 85 km away, Retalhuleu (pop. 36,700) 92 km away, and Nuevo San Carlos (pop. 19,200) 93 km away.
Other towns or cities near the epicenter where the quake might have been felt as very weak shaking include Colomba (pop. 19,100) located 96 km from the epicenter.
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
Local time at epicenter: Tuesday, Mar 23, 2021 at 6:40 pm (GMT -6)
Magnitude: 4.7
Depth: 23.0 km
Epicenter latitude / longitude: 14.17°N / 92.28°W
(North Pacific Ocean, Guatemala)Antipode: 14.17°S / 87.72°E
Nearest volcano: Tacana (108 km / 67 mi)
Nearby towns and cities:
39 km (24 mi) SSW of Ocos (Ocós) (pop: 9,460) --> See nearby quakes!
74 km (46 mi) SW of Coatepec (pop: 45,700) --> See nearby quakes!
77 km (48 mi) WSW of Retalhuleu (pop: 36,700) --> See nearby quakes!
79 km (49 mi) SW of Nuevo San Carlos (pop: 19,200) --> See nearby quakes!
84 km (52 mi) SW of Colomba (pop: 19,100) --> See nearby quakes!
93 km (58 mi) SW of Palmar (pop: 15,200) --> See nearby quakes!
93 km (58 mi) WSW of Mazatenango (pop: 44,100) --> See nearby quakes!
100 km (62 mi) W of Pueblo Nuevo (pop: 18,200) --> See nearby quakes!
110 km (69 mi) SW of Quetzaltenango (pop: 132,200) --> See nearby quakes!
197 km (123 mi) WSW of Guatemala (pop: 994,900) --> See nearby quakes!
Weather at epicenter at time of quake:
Scattered Clouds
39°C (102 F), humidity: 39%, wind: 3 m/s (6 kts) from SW
Primary data source: GFZ (German Research Centre for Geosciences)
Scattered Clouds
39°C (102 F), humidity: 39%, wind: 3 m/s (6 kts) from SWEstimated released energy: 7.1 x 1011 joules (197 megawatt hours, equivalent to 169 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 |
| 4.7 | 23 km | Near Coast of Chiapas, Mexico, Guatemala | GFZ |
| 5.1 | 9 km | 80 Km Al Suroeste De Champerico, Guatemala | INETER |
| 4.9 | 60 km | GUATEMALA | EMSC |
| 4.9 | 35 km | 65 Km SSW of Ocós, Guatemala | USGS |
| 4.9 | 8 km | 118 Km Al SUROESTE De CD HIDALGO, CHIS, Guatemala | SSN |
User reports for this quake
User reports estimate the perceived ground shaking intensity according to the MMI (Modified Mercalli Intensity) scale.
Earlier earthquakes in the same area
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