Reviewed by USGSChina50y ago
M4.8 earthquake 111 km WSW of Xichang, China
Friday, November 12, 1976, 21:27:14 UTC · 27.570°N, 101.190°E
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 111 km WSW of Xichang, China on Friday, November 12, 1976, 21:27:14 UTC, at a depth of 33.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.0 on November 8, 1976.
- Magnitude
- 4.8
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 33 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
239 tons of TNT
That is about 1/63 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 2 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
367 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
33 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 M4.3 on November 16, 1976. 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 100 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.3151 km W of Kangding, ChinaMay 25, 1948 · 294 km N of this epicenter
- 7.119 km WSW of Kangding, ChinaApril 14, 1955 · 271 km N of this epicenter
- 6.824 km NE of Dali, ChinaMarch 16, 1925 · 217 km S of this epicenter
- 6.892 km SSW of Luocheng, ChinaMay 16, 1936 · 269 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.8143 km WSW of Kangding, ChinaFebruary 9, 1908 · 211 km N of this epicenter
- 6.872 km WSW of Xunchang, ChinaMay 10, 1974 · 287 km E of this epicenter
- 6.793 km SSW of Luocheng, ChinaApril 26, 1936 · 268 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.711 km SE of Dadukou, ChinaSeptember 23, 1955 · 136 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 51 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 51,847 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1850M7.5
Sichuan: Xichang
12 Sep 1850 · 112 km away · intensity X
20,650 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1974M7.1
Yunnan And Sichuan Provinces, Chao-T'Ung
10 May 1974 · 287 km away
20,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1925M6.9
Yunnan Province: Talifu
16 Mar 1925 · 217 km away
5,800 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1917M6.8
Yunnan Province
30 Jul 1917 · 281 km away · intensity IX
1,800 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1751M6.8
Yunnan Province
25 May 1751 · 175 km away · intensity IX
900 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1948M7.3
Sichuan Province
25 May 1948 · 225 km away · intensity X
800 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.