Reviewed by USGSIndia90y ago
M5.9 earthquake 11 km N of Barkot, India
Wednesday, October 20, 1937, 01:23:48 UTC · 30.913°N, 78.228°E
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 11 km N of Barkot, India on Wednesday, October 20, 1937, 01:23:48 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.0 on March 5, 1935.
- Magnitude
- 5.9
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 15 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- —
- No ShakeMap
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
11 kilotons of TNT
That is about the energy of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 24 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
66 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Eurasian and Indian plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
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 75 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 13 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.9The 1905 Kangra, India EarthquakeApril 4, 1905 · 225 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.021 km SE of Dārchulā, NepalAugust 28, 1916 · 273 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.610 km W of Dera Gopipur, IndiaFebruary 27, 1906 · 229 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.588 km ENE of Joshīmath, IndiaOctober 14, 1911 · 201 km E of this epicenter
- 6.36 km N of Kotla, IndiaOctober 9, 1914 · 259 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.014 km W of Dhārchula, IndiaMarch 5, 1935 · 239 km SE of this epicenter
- 5.998 km SSE of Leh, IndiaMay 9, 1917 · 271 km N of this epicenter
- 5.926 km NNE of Dadeldhurā, NepalDecember 24, 1916 · 281 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 5 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 19,000 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1905M7.9
Kangra
4 Apr 1905 · 225 km away · intensity X
19,000 deaths$25 million damagetsunami
- 1803M7.5
Uttarakhand, Mathura (Muttra)
1 Sep 1803 · 74 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)
- 1720
Delhi
15 Jul 1720 · 224 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1916M7.7
Nepal; Tibet (Xizang Province)
28 Aug 1916 · 284 km away
- 1833M7.5
Lohughar
30 May 1833 · 246 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.