Reviewed by USGSChina5y ago
M4.5 earthquake in Southern Qinghai, China
Monday, May 31, 2021, 00:12:12 UTC · 34.497°N, 98.597°E
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck in Southern Qinghai, China on Monday, May 31, 2021, 00:12:12 UTC, at a depth of 12.4 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.0 on May 30, 2021.
- Magnitude
- 4.5
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 12 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
85 tons of TNT
That is about 1/178 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 6 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
719 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
12 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 50 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.2 on June 6, 2021. 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 79 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.8Southern Qinghai, ChinaJanuary 7, 1937 · 120 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.6Qinghai-Sichuan border region, ChinaMarch 17, 1947 · 138 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.3Southern Qinghai, ChinaMay 21, 2021 · 34 km W of this epicenter
- 6.9233 km NNW of Qamdo, ChinaApril 13, 2010 · 240 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.7Southern Qinghai, ChinaApril 19, 1963 · 192 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.5153 km WSW of Xining, ChinaApril 26, 1990 · 223 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.5296 km NE of Qamdo, ChinaAugust 25, 1919 · 151 km S of this epicenter
- 6.3Southern Qinghai, ChinaJuly 26, 1935 · 261 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 10 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 3,538 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 2010M6.9
Qinghai Province: Yushu
13 Apr 2010 · 240 km away
2,968 deaths$500 million damage
- 1738M6.5
Qinghai Province
1738 · 227 km away · intensity VIII
336 deaths
- 1990M6.9
Qinghai Province: Ganghe-Xinghai
26 Apr 1990 · 223 km away
126 deaths$58 million damage
- 1834M5.5
Qinghai Province
1834 · 222 km away · intensity VII
88 deaths
- 2021M7.3
Qinghai Province
21 May 2021 · 34 km away · intensity IX
20 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 2020M5.4
Qinghai Province
1 Apr 2020 · 155 km away
$11 million damage
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.