Reviewed by USGSChina99y ago
M6.3 earthquake 50 km SW of Wuwei, China
Wednesday, March 7, 1928, 22:43:28 UTC · 37.662°N, 102.160°E
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck 50 km SW of Wuwei, China on Wednesday, March 7, 1928, 22:43:28 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.7 on May 22, 1927.
- Magnitude
- 6.3
- 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 earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
44 kilotons of TNT
That is about 3 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 92 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
797 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Amur and Eurasian 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 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 12 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.731 km SSW of Wuwei, ChinaMay 22, 1927 · 29 km E of this epicenter
- 7.0139 km ENE of Baiyin, ChinaDecember 25, 1920 · 296 km E of this epicenter
- 6.275 km WNW of Xining, ChinaApril 12, 1921 · 142 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.1138 km SSW of Yinchuan, ChinaDecember 28, 1920 · 289 km E of this epicenter
- 6.077 km SE of Wuwei, ChinaMay 23, 1927 · 106 km E of this epicenter
- 6.0116 km SW of Yinchuan, ChinaJanuary 7, 1921 · 292 km E of this epicenter
- 6.075 km WSW of Wuwei, ChinaMay 23, 1927 · 27 km W of this epicenter
- 6.039 km SW of Jinchang, ChinaJune 23, 1927 · 66 km N of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 8 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 53,370 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1927M7.7
Gansu Province
22 May 1927 · 29 km away · intensity XI
40,912 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1921M6.2
Ningxia
12 Apr 1921 · 142 km away
10,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1709M7.5
Ningxia
14 Oct 1709 · 278 km away · intensity X
2,032 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1852M6.0
Ningxia
26 May 1852 · 268 km away · intensity VIII
300 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1819M5.8
Qinghai Province
24 Feb 1819 · 174 km away · intensity VII
126 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1888
Gansu Province
2 Nov 1888 · 191 km away · intensity VIII
Severe damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.