M5.5 earthquake near Caldera, Atacama

What happened

A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck 86 km WNW of Copiapó, Chile on 11 Sept 2023, 13:37 UTC at a depth of 21 km.

Earthquakes of this size are classed as Moderate. Can damage poorly built structures close to the epicentre. This was a shallow earthquake, which tends to be felt more strongly at the surface.

The nearest town in our records is Caldera, about 37 km away in Atacama, Chile.