Earthquakes medium

M 5.2 Earthquake 167 km WNW of Mejillones, Chile

Source: USGS · Chile

A magnitude 5.2 earthquake was recorded by USGS near 167 km WNW of Mejillones. On the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program scale, M5.2 is classified "Moderate". Among the 1,782 earthquake reports Areazine has published, this M5.2 event ranks stronger than 74% of them (rank #352 by magnitude).

The earthquake report, at a glance

Magnitude
M 5.2
USGS class
Moderate
Location
167 km WNW of Mejillones
Archive rank
#352 of 1,782
Source
USGS
Published
September 21, 2026
MODERATE

Stronger than 74% of the 1,782 earthquake reports in Areazine's archive, weaker than 351 others.

Record status: USGS's reading at the moment of detection — the agency keeps revising magnitude, aftershock counts, and felt reports on its own event page as more data arrives.

What Happened

A magnitude 5.2 mb earthquake occurred at 167 km WNW of Mejillones, Chile. The event took place at Unix timestamp 1789991308996 (UTC) and was reviewed by USGS.

Location Details

The epicenter was located at latitude -22.3643, longitude -71.8678. The depth of 10 km is classified as shallow (less than 20 km).

Impact Assessment

No felt reports, tsunami advisory, or alert level information is available in the source data. The tsunami flag is recorded as 0.

What You Should Know

Earthquakes of this magnitude are classified as moderate and can cause damage to poorly constructed buildings. Aftershocks are possible following any earthquake.

Source

Data from USGS: https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us7000tixc

Original source: USGS Official Notice ↗

Related Earthquakes

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Nationwide notices with similar length or severity timing 8

Two cross-category peer sets, both computed from Areazine's own archive: notices with a similar body length, and notices near the same severity and agency date. These are drawn from other categories, not the same-feed Related list above.

Similar body length

Nearest notices by article body length (755 characters here).

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Similar severity timing

Same severity (medium) notices issued closest in time to September 21, 2026.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Questions readers often have about this USGS earthquake report.

What was the magnitude of this event? ▾
A magnitude 5.2 mb earthquake struck 167 km WNW of Mejillones, Chile, at a depth of 10 km.
What does an M5.2 "Moderate" reading actually indicate? ▾
The USGS classifies M5.2 as "Moderate" on its Earthquake Hazards Program scale. Events in this range are felt over a wide area and can cause significant damage near the epicenter, particularly to older or unreinforced buildings.
Where does this event rank against Areazine's other recorded earthquakes? ▾
This is the #352 strongest of the 1,782 earthquake reports in Areazine's archive by magnitude, stronger than 74% of them and weaker than 351 others.
Was Mejillones likely to feel this earthquake? ▾
This event was centered 167 km WNW of Mejillones. Shaking intensity falls off sharply with distance from the epicenter and depends on depth and local geology, so check the USGS "Did You Feel It?" report for this event for real felt-shaking data rather than assuming from magnitude and distance alone.

Where this data comes from

EPA Outdoor Air Quality Data

Federal monitoring network, every measurement we report

AirNow (EPA / NOAA)

Real-time AQI for every monitored U.S. location

National Weather Service

Active watches, warnings, and advisories, NOAA

CDC Air Quality & Health

Health-impact reference behind every AQI category