M 7.1 - 2025 Southern Tibetan Plateau Earthquake
2025 Southern Tibetan Plateau Earthquake
2025 Xizang, China Earthquake
1D crustal model interpolated from CRUST2.0 (Bassin et al., 2000).
Tectonic Summary
The January 7, 2025, M7.1 earthquake in the southern Tibetan Plateau occurred as the result of normal faulting at shallow depths north of the boundary between the Eurasia and Indian plates. Focal mechanism solutions indicate that rupture occurred on a roughly north-south striking fault, dipping moderately to either to the east or to the west. Continental collision between the India and Eurasia plates drives uplift of the Himalayan Mountains. Focal mechanism solutions of this earthquake indicate this event was associated with a normal fault oriented roughly perpendicular to the plate boundary north of the Himalayan Mountains within the Eurasian plate.
While commonly plotted as points on maps, earthquakes of this size are more appropriately described as slip over a larger fault area. Normal faulting events of the size of the January 7, 2025 earthquake are typically about 45 km by 20 km (length x width).
The region near the India and Eurasia plate boundary has a history of large earthquakes. In the past century, there have been 10 earthquakes of magnitude 6 and greater within 250 km of the January 7, 2025, earthquake. This includes the 2015 M7.3 Nepal earthquake, located about 160 km to the southwest and the 1934 M8.0 earthquake, located about 160 to the south-southwest. The 2015 M7.3 Nepal earthquake was an aftershock of the April 25, 2015 M7.8 Nepal earthquake. This sequence of 2015 events resulted in 8,669 fatalities and widespread damage.
93 km NE of Lobuche, Nepal
USGS NEIC ShakeMap (primary)