Reviewed by USGSChina101y ago
M5.7 earthquake 149 km SW of Dali, China
Sunday, December 5, 1926, 19:40:32 UTC · 24.467°N, 99.387°E
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck 149 km SW of Dali, China on Sunday, December 5, 1926, 19:40:32 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.8 on November 21, 1926.
- Magnitude
- 5.7
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 10 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
6 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/3 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 12 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
313 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Indian and Eurasian 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 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 6 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.362 km S of Bhamo, MyanmarFebruary 17, 1905 · 241 km W of this epicenter
- 7.399 km E of Lashio, MyanmarJune 22, 1923 · 196 km S of this epicenter
- 6.824 km NE of Dali, ChinaMarch 16, 1925 · 174 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.833 km WSW of Yuxi, ChinaDecember 21, 1913 · 289 km E of this epicenter
- 6.110 km WNW of Lijiang, ChinaOctober 15, 1925 · 280 km N of this epicenter
- 5.892 km WSW of Myitkyina, MyanmarNovember 21, 1926 · 284 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 15 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 7,435 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1925M6.9
Yunnan Province: Talifu
16 Mar 1925 · 174 km away
5,800 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1751M6.8
Yunnan Province
25 May 1751 · 232 km away · intensity IX
900 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1755M6.5
Yunnan Province
27 Jan 1755 · 286 km away · intensity VIII
270 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1803M6.0
Yunnan Province
1 Feb 1803 · 176 km away · intensity VIII
200 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1839M6.0
Yunnan Province
23 Feb 1839 · 189 km away · intensity VIII
129 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1839M6.0
Yunnan Province
7 Feb 1839 · 189 km away · intensity VIII
100 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.