Reviewed by USGSChina5y ago
M4.1 earthquake in Southern Qinghai, China
Saturday, June 12, 2021, 12:48:22 UTC · 34.901°N, 97.478°E
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck in Southern Qinghai, China on Saturday, June 12, 2021, 12:48:22 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 4.1
- Light · mb
- 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
21 tons of TNT
That is about 1/707 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 22 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
753 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
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 50 km
USGS lists 3 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.1 on July 8, 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 102 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 · 54 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.6Qinghai-Sichuan border region, ChinaMarch 17, 1947 · 242 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.3Southern Qinghai, ChinaMay 21, 2021 · 78 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.9233 km NNW of Qamdo, ChinaApril 13, 2010 · 211 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.7Southern Qinghai, ChinaApril 19, 1963 · 91 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.6northern Qinghai, ChinaMay 21, 1962 · 265 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.5153 km WSW of Xining, ChinaApril 26, 1990 · 278 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.5296 km NE of Qamdo, ChinaAugust 25, 1919 · 242 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 12 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 · 211 km away
2,968 deaths$500 million damage
- 1738M6.5
Qinghai Province
1738 · 195 km away · intensity VIII
336 deaths
- 1990M6.9
Qinghai Province: Ganghe-Xinghai
26 Apr 1990 · 278 km away
126 deaths$58 million damage
- 1834M5.5
Qinghai Province
1834 · 216 km away · intensity VII
88 deaths
- 2021M7.3
Qinghai Province
21 May 2021 · 78 km away · intensity IX
20 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 2004M5.4
Qinghai Province: Delingha
4 May 2004 · 297 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.