1837 Valdivia earthquake

1837 Valdivia earthquake
1837 Valdivia earthquake is located in Chile
1837 Valdivia earthquake
Local dateNovember 7, 1837 (1837-11-07)
Magnitude8.8–9.5 Mw[A]
Epicenter39°48′50″S 73°14′45″W / 39.813889°S 73.245833°W / -39.813889; -73.245833
Areas affectedChile
Tsunamiyes
Casualties14[3]

The 1837 Valdivia earthquake struck south-central Chile on November 7.[1] Together with earthquakes in 1575 and 1737 the earthquake is among the historical predecessors to the great 1960 earthquake.[1] The rupture zone was roughly from Valdivia to the south. It was felt in the cities of Concepción, Valdivia and Ancud. The earthquake was also felt by the crew whaling ships in Guafo Island and Chonos Archipelago. Various landslides were triggered in Chiloé and people are reported to have been thrown to the ground in Valdivia. In contrast in Concepción the shakings were moderate.[1] As reported in various coastal localities the ground rose as result of the earthquake. Decades later while surveying southern Chile's coasts Francisco Vidal Gormaz was told of islands that been submerged and some that had emerged as a consequence of the earthquake.[1] The earthquake caused a tsunami that struck Hawaii, what is now French Polynesia, and Japan.[1] At Hilo, Hawaii, the tsunami destroyed 66 houses and caused the deaths of 14 inhabitants.[3]

In Japan the tsunami flooded rice fields, destroyed salmon traps and broke into salt evaporation ponds causing significant economic losses.[1]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Cisternas, M.; Carvajal, M.; Wesson, R.; Ely, L.L.; Gorigoitia, N. (2018). "Exploring the Historical Earthquakes Preceding the Giant 1960 Chile Earthquake in a Time-Dependent Seismogenic Zone". Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America. 107 (6): 2664–2675. Bibcode:2017BuSSA.107.2664C. doi:10.1785/0120170103.
  2. ^ Carvajal, M.; Cisternas, M.; Gubler, A.; Catalán, P.; Winckler, P.; Wesson, P. (2017). "Reexamination of the magnitudes for the 1906 and 1922 Chilean earthquakes using Japanese tsunami amplitudes: Implications for source depth constraints". Journal of Geophysical Research. 122 (1): 4–17. Bibcode:2017JGRB..122....4C. doi:10.1002/2016JB013269.
  3. ^ a b Fisher, S.; Goff, J.; Cundy, A.; Sear, D. (2023). "A qualitative review of tsunamis in Hawaiʻi". Natural Hazards. 118 (3): 1797–1832. Bibcode:2023NatHa.118.1797F. doi:10.1007/s11069-023-06076-w.


Cite error: There are <ref group=upper-alpha> tags or {{efn-ua}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=upper-alpha}} template or {{notelist-ua}} template (see the help page).