Reviewed by USGSMyanmar85y ago
M6.9 earthquake 80 km N of Kēng Tung, Myanmar
Friday, December 26, 1941, 14:48:05 UTC · 22.346°N, 99.813°E
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck 80 km N of Kēng Tung, Myanmar on Friday, December 26, 1941, 14:48:05 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.3 on June 22, 1923.
- Magnitude
- 6.9
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 10 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VIII
- Severe (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
362 kilotons of TNT
That is about 24 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 759 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
347 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Caribbean and North American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
10 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 has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 10 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.399 km E of Lashio, MyanmarJune 22, 1923 · 125 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.7172 km ENE of Lashio, MyanmarMay 16, 1941 · 165 km N of this epicenter
- 6.741 km S of Luang Namtha, LaosDecember 22, 1925 · 260 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.231 km SSE of Jinghong, ChinaJuly 1, 1923 · 125 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.2139 km N of Kēng Tung, MyanmarMay 14, 1938 · 60 km N of this epicenter
- 5.8117 km S of Jianshui, ChinaOctober 26, 1938 · 174 km NE of this epicenter
- 5.7149 km SW of Dali, ChinaDecember 5, 1926 · 240 km N of this epicenter
- 5.678 km S of Bhamo, MyanmarJuly 29, 1931 · 287 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 7 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 25 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1884M6.5
Yunnan Province
14 Nov 1884 · 151 km away · intensity VIII
17 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1927M5.0
Yunnan Province: Xinping
20 Mar 1927 · 297 km away · intensity VI
7 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1906M5.3
Yunnan Province
May 1906 · 279 km away · intensity VII
1 deathModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1941M7.0
Yunnan Province
16 May 1941 · 146 km away · intensity IX
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1941M7.0
Yunnan Province
26 Dec 1941 · 40 km away · intensity VIII
Limited damage (under $1M)
- 1938M6.2
Yunnan Province
14 May 1938 · 60 km away · intensity VIII
Limited damage (under $1M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.