1950 Calama earthquake
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  | |
| UTC time | 1950-12-09 21:38:51 |
|---|---|
| ISC event | 896170 |
| USGS-ANSS | ComCat |
| Local date | December 9, 1950 |
| Local time | 18:38:51 (UTC-3) |
| Magnitude | Mw 8.2 |
| Depth | 113.9 km (70.8 mi) |
| Epicenter | 23°58′37″S 67°54′43″W / 23.977°S 67.912°W |
| Type | Normal |
| Areas affected | Chile |
| Max. intensity | MMI VII (Very strong)[1] |
| Casualties | 1 dead, "several" injured |
The 1950 Calama earthquake occurred near the Argentina–Chile border with an epicenter near Calama, Chile in the Atacama Desert on December 9. The event had a hypocenter depth of 113.9 km, beneath the Caichinque volcanic complex. It measured magnitude Mw 8.2 on the moment magnitude scale, making it the largest intermediate depth earthquake ever recorded on Chilean soil.[2][3] One person was killed and an unspecified number of people were injured in Calama.[1]
Earthquakes are frequent in Chile as it lies in the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, where many of the world's active volcanoes and seismic activities are concentrated at. Off the coast of Chile, the Nazca Plate subducts beneath the South American Plate along the Peru–Chile or Atacama Megathrust, producing large earthquakes including the 1960 Chilean earthquake which had a magnitude of 9.5–9.6 on the moment magnitude scale.[4]
In some cases, intraslab earthquakes occur. These earthquakes do not occur on the subduction interface; rather they happen as a result of faulting within the downgoing Nazca Plate. Intraslab earthquakes can occur anywhere within the slab, which may be deeper than 600 km.