Xinjiang (China)

An earthquake of magnitude 6.2 rattled through Xinjiang, a statement by the National Center for Seismology (NCS) said.

The earthquake struck at a shallow depth of 10km, making it susceptible to aftershocks.

In a post on X, the NCS said, "EQ of M: 6.2, On: 04/12/2025 13:14:07 IST, Lat: 41.10 N, Long: 78.61 E, Depth: 10 Km, Location: Xinjiang, China."

EQ of M: 6.2, On: 04/12/2025 13:14:07 IST, Lat: 41.10 N, Long: 78.61 E, Depth: 10 Km, Location: Xinjiang, China.
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— National Center for Seismology (@NCS_Earthquake) December 4, 2025

Earlier on December 2, another earthquake of magnitude 3.9 struck the region at a depth of 10km.

In a post on X, the NCS said, "EQ of M: 3.9, On: 02/12/2025 17:15:31 IST, Lat: 35.78 N, Long: 77.97 E, Depth: 10 Km, Location: Xinjiang."

Shallow earthquakes are generally more dangerous than deep earthquakes. This is because the seismic waves from shallow earthquakes have a shorter distance to travel to the surface, resulting in stronger ground shaking and potentially more damage to structures and greater casualties.

China's geographical position makes it highly prone to frequent seismic activity.

It is located between the two largest seismic belts, the circum-Pacific seismic belt and the circum-Indian seismic belt.

Squeezed by the Pacific plate, the Indian plate and the Philippine plate, the seismic fracture zones are well developed in this region.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, more than 800 earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater have occurred in China.

Earthquakes have struck almost all provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions, except for Guizhou, Zhejiang, and Hong Kong.

According to the Science Museums of China, over 5,50,000 people have died in earthquakes in China since 1900, accounting for 53 per cent of total global earthquake casualties.

Since 1949, more than 100 destructive earthquakes have occurred across Chinese provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, 14 of which are in East China.

These earthquakes have caused the deaths of more than 2,70,000 people, representing 54 per cent of the total death toll caused by natural disasters in China.

The earthquake-stricken districts cover an area of 300,000 square kilometres, with more than 7 million rooms destroyed.

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Experts note that earthquakes and other natural disasters continue to pose major challenges to China even in peaceful times.