Reviewed by USGSChina31y ago
M4.3 earthquake 24 km NW of Lijiang, China
Saturday, February 24, 1996, 18:38:36 UTC · 27.007°N, 100.026°E
A magnitude 4.3 earthquake struck 24 km NW of Lijiang, China on Saturday, February 24, 1996, 18:38:36 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 4.3
- 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
43 tons of TNT
That is about 1/354 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 11 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
264 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 50 km
USGS lists 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.7 on March 13, 1996. 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 126 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.264 km NNE of Sarupathar, IndiaDecember 12, 1908 · 290 km W of this epicenter
- 6.9169 km SW of Dali, ChinaMay 29, 1976 · 291 km S of this epicenter
- 6.824 km NE of Dali, ChinaMarch 16, 1925 · 143 km S of this epicenter
- 6.8143 km WSW of Kangding, ChinaFebruary 9, 1908 · 273 km N of this epicenter
- 6.711 km SE of Dadukou, ChinaSeptember 23, 1955 · 184 km E of this epicenter
- 6.7129 km ENE of Myitkyina, MyanmarSeptember 21, 1930 · 194 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.659 km N of Xichang, ChinaSeptember 30, 1952 · 270 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.647 km N of Lijiang, ChinaFebruary 3, 1996 · 40 km NE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 38 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 29,256 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1850M7.5
Sichuan: Xichang
12 Sep 1850 · 241 km away · intensity X
20,650 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1925M6.9
Yunnan Province: Talifu
16 Mar 1925 · 143 km away
5,800 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1751M6.8
Yunnan Province
25 May 1751 · 58 km away · intensity IX
900 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1948M7.3
Sichuan Province
25 May 1948 · 281 km away · intensity X
800 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1996M6.6
Yunnan Province: Lijiang
3 Feb 1996 · 40 km away · intensity IX
322 deaths$506 million damage
- 1803M6.0
Yunnan Province
1 Feb 1803 · 167 km away · intensity VIII
200 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.