M7.3 Earthquake near Southern Qinghai, China — May 21, 2021
2021-05-21 18:04:13 UTC (2021-05-21) · approx. 1:04 AM UTC+7 local
Felt by 28 people across nearby locations. Maximum shaking intensity MMI 8.9 (violent).
On May 21, 2021 at 18:04 UTC, a magnitude 7.3 shallow crustal earthquake struck near Southern Qinghai, China, at a depth of 10.0 km and coordinates 34.5983°, 98.2513°. The earthquake was reported felt by 28 peopleacross nearby locations, with a maximum shaking intensity of Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) 8.9 (violent). The USGS PAGER system issued a orange alert level for this event, indicating regional impact possible. The nearest populated place is Huanghe (population 0).
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 7.3 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 1.3 megatons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 66 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
Nearest Populated Places
ShakeMap — predicted shaking intensity
Modeled ground-motion intensity contoured on the Modified Mercalli scale (MMI). Computed by the USGS from the moment-tensor solution and regional ground-motion prediction equations.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey ShakeMap. View interactive ShakeMap on USGS
Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking
Aggregated felt-report intensity from 28 citizen responses to the USGS Did You Feel It? system. Each colored zone represents the average MMI from reports in that area.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey Did You Feel It?. View on USGS · submit your own report
Population exposure (USGS PAGER)
Estimated population that experienced each level of shaking. Based on the USGS PAGER rapid impact assessment, which combines ShakeMap output with global population grids.
| Shaking intensity (MMI) | Description | Population exposed |
|---|---|---|
| MMI 3 | weak | 20,247,602 |
| MMI 4 | light | 53,969,272 |
| MMI 5 | moderate | 300,571 |
| MMI 6 | strong | 37,738 |
| MMI 7 | very strong | 5,874 |
| MMI 8 | severe | 402 |
| MMI 9 | violent | 928 |
Earthquake Details
98.2513°E
Technical Information
Nearby Earthquakes (Last 7 Days)
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 7.3 earthquake near Southern Qinghai, China?
The magnitude 7.3 earthquake that struck near Southern Qinghai, China on May 21, 2021 at 18:04 UTC had a depth of 10.0 km. It was felt by 28 people with maximum shaking intensity of MMI 8.9 (violent). For context, this was a strong earthquake capable of causing significant damage.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at 34.5983°, 98.2513°, which is near Southern Qinghai, China. The nearest populated place is Huanghe (population 0).
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 7.3 earthquakes can continue for months to years and gradually diminish over time.
Actions
Location
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us7000e54r). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2021, May 21, 2021). M7.3 Earthquake near Southern Qinghai, China — May 21, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us7000e54r/