M5.9 Earthquake 53 km S of K?ng Tung, Myanmar — July 21, 2022
2022-07-21 17:07:25 UTC (2022-07-21) · approx. 12:07 AM UTC+7 local
Felt by 50 people across nearby locations. Maximum shaking intensity MMI 7.3 (severe).
On July 21, 2022 at 17:07 UTC, a magnitude 5.9 shallow crustal earthquake struck 53 km S of K?ng Tung, Myanmar, at a depth of 5.0 km and coordinates 21.1504°, 99.8777°. The earthquake was reported felt by 50 peopleacross nearby locations, with a maximum shaking intensity of Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) 7.3 (severe). The USGS PAGER system issued a green alert level for this event, indicating no significant casualties or damage expected. This earthquake was detected by 128 seismic stations with excellent location accuracy and was assigned a USGS significance rating of 564, placing it among routine seismic activity. The nearest populated place is Chiang Saen (population 10,807).
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 5.9 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 11 kilotons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 7.1 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 50 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 | 3,951,139 |
| MMI 4 | light | 2,530,993 |
| MMI 5 | moderate | 190,339 |
| MMI 6 | strong | 17,738 |
| MMI 7 | very strong | 1,688 |
Earthquake Details
99.8777°E
Technical Information
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 5.9 earthquake near K?ng Tung, Myanmar?
The magnitude 5.9 earthquake that struck 53 km S of K?ng Tung, Myanmar on July 21, 2022 at 17:07 UTC had a depth of 5.0 km. It was felt by 50 people with maximum shaking intensity of MMI 7.3 (severe). For context, this was a moderate earthquake that could be widely felt.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at 21.1504°, 99.8777°, which is 53 km S of K?ng Tung, Myanmar. The nearest populated place is Chiang Saen (population 10,807).
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 5.9 earthquakes can continue for days to weeks and gradually diminish over time.
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us7000hsg4). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2022, July 21, 2022). M5.9 Earthquake 53 km S of K?ng Tung, Myanmar — July 21, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us7000hsg4/