Magnitude 7.0 Earthquake Shakes China's Tibetan Plateau

A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck a remote section of China's Tibetan Plateau on Thursday, shaking an area inhabited by approximately 132,000 people. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) located the earthquake about 119 miles east-northeast of Nagqu, China, at a depth of 11.2 miles.

The earthquake occurred at 9:33 a.m. ET, or 10:33 p.m. local time, according to the USGS. The agency reported that the affected area experienced moderate to severe shaking, although the remote location limited exposure to certain earthquake-related hazards.

The USGS attributed the earthquake to normal faulting within the Tibetan Plateau, a seismically active region shaped by the ongoing collision of the Indian and Eurasian plates. This geological process continues to drive crustal deformation across the region.

The earthquake's location in a sparsely populated area is an important factor in assessing potential impacts. According to the USGS, exposure to hazards such as landslides and liquefaction was limited by the region's remote character.

Liquefaction occurs when water-saturated soil loses strength during intense shaking and begins behaving like a liquid. The USGS identified this process, along with landslides, as among the hazards for which exposure was limited in the affected area.

The collision between the Indian and Eurasian plates began approximately 50 million years ago, according to the USGS. The continuing movement pushed the Indian Plate beneath Eurasia, contributing to the formation of the Himalayas and the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau.

As the plateau spreads eastward and westward under its own weight, the Earth's crust stretches and fractures along normal faults. These movements can generate earthquakes, including the magnitude 7.0 event reported Thursday.

Historical records cited in the report show that 29 earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 or greater have struck the Tibetan Plateau and surrounding regions since 1900. The largest was the magnitude 8.6 Assam-Tibet earthquake on August 15, 1950, which killed more than 4,000 people.

Another major earthquake struck the broader region on April 13, 2010. That magnitude 6.9 event occurred about 169 miles east-northeast of the location of Thursday's earthquake and killed more than 2,500 people.

The USGS noted that the effects of major earthquakes across the Tibetan Plateau can vary considerably because population density is low in many areas. The distance between an earthquake rupture and nearby population centers influences the potential impact on communities.