Light magnitude 3.8 earthquake at 37 km depth23 May 04:56 UTC: First to report: EMSC after 3 minutes.I didn't feel itI felt this quakeEarthquake detailsDate & timeMay 23, 2026 04:53:10 UTC - Local time at epicenterSaturday, May 23, 2026, at 12:53 am (GMT -4)StatusconfirmedMagnitude3.80Depth37.3 kmEpicenter latitude / longitude27.33°S / 70.83°WCopiapo, Region de Atacama, ChileSeismic antipode27.33°N / 109.17°EChinaShaking intensityIII Weak shaking near epicenterFelt1 reportPrimary data sourceEMSC (European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre)Nearest volcanoCopiapo (168 km / 104 mi)Weather at epicenter at time of quakeOvercast Clouds 12.8°C (55 F), humidity: 82%, wind: 3 m/s (6 kts) from SEstimated seismic energy released3.2 x 1010 joules (8.78 megawatt hours, equivalent to 7.56 tons of TNT) | equivalent to ONE quake of magnitude 3.8 | about seismic energy4 minutes ago reported feltMay 23, 2026 04:53 GMT / May 23, 2026 12:53 am (GMT -4)Lat / Lng: -27.33 / -70.83: Atacama, ChileSource: EMSCOther sources: RaspberryShake: 3.8 / 37 kmDetail info | Read user reports | You felt it? - Report it!';storedMarkers.push(['quake-23026951',-27.33000,-70.83000,'4 minutes ago: Mag. 3.8, Atacama, Chile',html,'quakes-5-24.png',18,18,9,9,124]); function mkRep(id,notFelt){var nFelt=notFelt||false;var src="https://www.volcanoesandearthquakes.com/app/earthquake-report.php?quakeId="+id;if(nFelt==true){src+="¬Felt=true";}window.open(src,"","status=0,toolbar=0,location=0,directories=0,menubar=0,resizable=1,scrollbars=1,height=400,width=350");} function locationHashChanged(e){-1!=e.oldURL.indexOf("#popupMap")&&closePopup()} window.onhashchange = locationHashChanged; function comment(e){var t=e.parentNode,a=(t.dataset.id,document.getElementById("commentForm"));"none"==a.style.display?(t.appendChild(a),a.style.display="block"):a.style.display="none"}function sendComment(e){var t=e.parentNode,a=t.parentNode.dataset.id,n=document.getElementById("commentContent"),p=n.value.trim();if(p){var o="id="+a+"&quakeId="+thisQuakeId;o+="&comment="+decodeURIComponent(p),mkRequest("//reports.volcanodiscovery.com/app/eqReportComment.php","post",o,function(e){e.responseText;alert("Thank you for submitting your comment!"),t.style.display="none",n.value=""})}}function flagReport(e){var t=e.parentNode.dataset.id;if(confirm("Report this as inappropriate?")){var a="id="+t+"&quakeId="+thisQuakeId+"&flagAsInappropriate=1";mkRequest("//reports.volcanodiscovery.com/app/eqReportComment.php","post",a,function(t){var a=t.responseText;alert(a),e.style.display="none"})}}function likeReport(e){var t="id="+e.parentNode.dataset.id+"&quakeId="+thisQuakeId+"&like=1";mkRequest("//reports.volcanodiscovery.com/app/eqReportComment.php","post",t,function(t){t.responseText;e.style.opacity=.5})}]]>[smaller] [bigger]Most recent quakes Top 20 past 24 hrs Quakes in ChileNearby placesThe closest larger town where the quake might have been felt is Copiapo, a city with more than 130,000 inhabitants in Chile, in 49 km (31 mi) distance east of the epicenter. People likely experienced very weak shaking there. Several smaller towns and villages are located closer to the epicenter and might have experienced stronger shaking. In the capital of Chile, Santiago, 682 km (424 mi) away from the epicenter, the earthquake could not be felt.The following table shows some of the places that might have been affected (or not) by the shaking.DistancePlaceMax. shaking intensity(*)RegionCountry29 km (18 mi)N of epicenterCaldera(pop: 16,200)II: Very weakCopiapo, Region de AtacamaChile49 km (31 mi)E of epicenterCopiapo(pop: 129,300)II: Very weakCopiapo, Region de AtacamaChile58 km (36 mi)E of epicenterTierra Amarilla(pop: 12,900)II: Very weakCopiapo, Region de AtacamaChile130 km (81 mi)NE of epicenterDiego de Almagro(pop: 13,900)II: Very weakChanaral, Region de AtacamaChile132 km (82 mi)S of epicenterHuasco(pop: 8,980)II: Very weakRegion de AtacamaChile133 km (83 mi)S of epicenterFreirina(pop: 6,040)II: Very weakHuasco, Region de AtacamaChile139 km (86 mi)S of epicenterVallenar(pop: 44,900)I: Not feltHuasco, Region de AtacamaChile162 km (101 mi)S of epicenterAlto del Carmen(pop: 5,030)I: Not feltHuasco, Region de AtacamaChile217 km (135 mi)N of epicenterTaltal(pop: 11,100)I: Not feltProvincia de Antofagasta, Region de AntofagastaChile245 km (152 mi)S of epicenterLa Higuera(pop: 4,290)I: Not feltProvincia de Elqui, Region de CoquimboChile303 km (188 mi)SE of epicenterVinchina(pop: 2,830)I: Not feltLa Rioja ProvinceArgentina682 km (424 mi)S of epicenterSantiago(pop: 4,837,300): Not feltSantiago MetropolitanChileNotes:(*) Shaking intensity according to the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale (MMI) and estimated using seismic models.User-reports for this quake (1)So far, we have received 1 report for this quake. This section is being updated as new data comes in.User reports estimate the perceived ground shaking intensity according to the MMI (Modified Mercalli Intensity) scale.Translate47.9 km E of epicenter [Map] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) (reported through our app)What is Intensity and the Mercalli Intensity Scale?The amount of shaking that occurs on the surface due to an earthquake is called the intensity. It is commonly measured on the so-called Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale (MMI) ranging from 1 (not felt) to 10 (extreme shaking), and given in Roman numerals as I,II,...IX, X, and often displayed with color codes ranging from light blue to dark red.Earthquake intensity depends mainly on the magnitude and depth of the quake as well as the distance from the epicenter: The further away, the less shaking intensity occurs.Read more about the MMI scale!Number of reports by intensityShaking intensityNumber of reportsMin-Max distance from epicenter (*)Average distance (*)II: Very weak shaking148–48 km (30–30 mi)48 km (30 mi)Notes(*) Reports are filtered to exclude those that are likely highly inaccurate or esaggerated.Only reports with latitude/longitude coordinate positions given (1 in total) could be used for geographic statistics.Get the Android appI didn't feel itI felt this quakeIf you were near the epicenter and felt it, please share your experience and submit a short "I felt it" report! Other users would love to hear about it!If you did NOT feel the quake although you were in the area, please report it as well! Your contribution is valuable to earthquake science and seismic hazard analysis.Compare Quake DataData for the same earthquake as reported by different agenciesThe 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.MagDepthTime GMT2026-05-23EpicenterAgency3.837 km23 mi04:53:10ATACAMA, CHILEEMSC (European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre)3.837 km23 mi04:53:10Near Coast of Northern Chile0.2 km (0.2 mi) epicenter difference with EMSCRaspberryShake (RaspberryShake)Earthquake statisticsAverage number of earthquakesBased on data from the past 26 years and our earthquake archive back to 1900, there are about 195 quakes on average per year in the area near the epicenter of this quake (within 100 km/61 mi):Mag. 7 or higher: 0.02 quakes per year (or 1 quake every 41.7 years)Mag. 6 or higher: 0.25 quakes per year (or 1 quake every 3.9 years)Mag. 5 or higher: 2.6 quakes per yearMag. 4 or higher: 23.6 quakes per yearMag. 3 or higher: 104 quakes per year (or 8.7 quakes per month)Mag. 2 or higher: 195 quakes per year (or 16.2 quakes per month)The area where this quake occurred has a very high level of seismic activity. It has had at least 3 quakes above magnitude 7 since 1900, which suggests that larger earthquakes of this size occur infrequently, probably on average approximately every 40 to 45 years.Number of quakes per yearPrevious quakes in the same area of this earthquake