Reviewed by USGSChina76y ago
M6.2 earthquake 36 km SSE of Qamdo, China
Saturday, March 17, 1951, 04:27:36 UTC · 30.843°N, 97.363°E
A magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck 36 km SSE of Qamdo, China on Saturday, March 17, 1951, 04:27:36 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.3 on August 18, 1950.
- Magnitude
- 6.2
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 15 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VII
- Very strong (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 100 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
32 kilotons of TNT
That is about 2 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 68 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
305 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Eurasian and Indian plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
15 km
Shallow earthquakes (under 70 km) produce the strongest surface shaking for their size, so they are the ones most likely to cause damage near the epicenter.
Did You Feel It?
Where it was felt
No “Did You Feel It?” reports have been published for this event yet. If you felt it, you can add your report on the USGS website.
I felt it — report to USGS ↗USGS PAGER estimate
Who was exposed to shaking
USGS publishes PAGER impact estimates for significant earthquakes, usually within an hour. No PAGER estimate is available for this event.
After the main event
Aftershocks within 100 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.7 on April 6, 1951. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 28 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.61950 Assam-Tibet EarthquakeAugust 15, 1950 · 290 km S of this epicenter
- 6.3177 km WNW of Kangding, ChinaOctober 20, 1923 · 273 km E of this epicenter
- 6.3136 km NNE of Pāsighāt, IndiaAugust 18, 1950 · 232 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.3167 km NNE of Shi Yomi, IndiaNovember 21, 1938 · 238 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.185 km NNE of Pāsighāt, IndiaDecember 3, 1950 · 282 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.1167 km SSW of Qamdo, ChinaAugust 18, 1950 · 147 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.097 km NE of Shi Yomi, IndiaAugust 23, 1950 · 290 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.0190 km NE of Shi Yomi, IndiaAugust 22, 1950 · 204 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 6 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 4,934 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1870M7.3
Sichuan Province: Batang
11 Apr 1870 · 183 km away · intensity X
2,300 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1950M8.6
India-China
15 Aug 1950 · 274 km away · intensity XI
1,530 deaths$20 million damagetsunami
- 1811M6.5
Sichuan Province: E. Of Ganze
27 Sep 1811 · 295 km away · intensity VIII
480 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1738M6.5
Qinghai Province
1738 · 283 km away · intensity VIII
336 deaths
- 1930M5.5
Sichuan Province
24 Aug 1930 · 270 km away
200 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1834M5.5
Qinghai Province
1834 · 242 km away · intensity VII
88 deaths
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.