Very deep M6.4 earthquake hits Santiago del Estero, Argentina
Image credit: TWSAM, Google
A very deep earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.4 hit Santiago del Estero, Argentina at 18:37 UTC on January 24, 2023. The agency is reporting a depth of 601 km (373.4 miles). EMSC is reporting M6.1 at a depth of 584 km (362.9 miles).
The same area was hit by a very deep M6.8 earthquake at 22:09 UTC on January 20.
The epicenter was located 33.5 km (20.8 miles) SW of Campo Gallo (population 5 455), and 129.7 km (80.6 miles) NNW of Quimili (population 10 959), Santiago del Estero, Argentina.
1 658 000 people are estimated to have felt weak shaking.
The USGS issued a Green alert for shaking-related fatalities and economic losses. There is a low likelihood of casualties and damage.
Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are vulnerable to earthquake shaking, though resistant structures exist. The predominant vulnerable building types are adobe block with concrete bond beam and unreinforced brick with concrete floor construction.
Estimated population exposure to earthquake shaking
Selected cities exposed
Regional seismicity
I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.
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