1714 Bhutan earthquake

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1714 Bhutan earthquake
Bhutan relief map.svg
Bullseye1.png
Local date4 May 1714 (1714-05-04)
Local timeAt night
Magnitude8.1±0.5 Mw
Epicenter 27°N90°E / 27°N 90°E / 27; 90 location approximate
Fault Main Frontal Thrust
Type Thrust
Max. intensity IX (Violent)
Casualties"Many"

Bhutan was struck by a major earthquake on 4 May 1714. It had an estimated magnitude of about 8.1 Mw and caused shaking that reached IX (Violent) on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale. It is thought to have been caused by rupture of the Bhutan part of the Main Frontal Thrust. [1] Damage was reported from west central Bhutan and northeast India. [2] The earthquake resulted in "many fatalities". [3]

Contents

Tectonic setting

Bhutan lies across the southern margin of the Himalayas. This mountain belt, and the Tibetan Plateau that lies north of it, is the result of the ongoing collision of the Indian Plate with the Eurasian Plate. The main active structures on the margin are a series of major thrust faults. The basal thrust is known as the Main Himalayan Thrust (MHT) which links directly northwards into the plate boundary and forms the décollement for the whole thrust system. The southernmost thrust that reaches the surface is the Main Frontal Thrust (MFT), which joins with the MHT at depth. Other shallower thrusts also branch (splay) off the MHT, including the Main Central Thrust and the Main Boundary Thrust. All of these thrusts are capable of producing large and damaging earthquakes. The April 2015 Nepal earthquake is the most recent such event, which ruptured the MHT. [4]

Earthquake

Earlier work on this event gave the year as 1713, [3] but the discovery of more records strongly suggested that the earthquake occurred in 1714. This is supported by records of the event in northeastern India, stating that it occurred shortly before the death of King Rudra Singh in August 1714. [2]

The magnitude and location of the earthquake have been estimated using seismic intensities taken from damage records in both Bhutan and India. Further information has come from paleoseismological investigations of trenches dug across the Main Frontal Thrust. Evidence for surface rupture during this earthquake has been found at three sites along the outcrop of the MFT in Bhutan. The largest observed displacement attributed to this event was about 11 m at a site near Samdrup Jongkhar, close to the Bhutan-India border. [1] The magnitude is estimated to lie in the range 7.6–8.6 Mw . The length of the rupture along the mountain front is estimated to be a minimum of 175 km and probably as much as 290 km.

Thirty aftershocks were reported on the same day as the earthquake, with more occurring over the following month. [2]

Damage

The effects of this earthquake were recorded in the writings of the Chief Abbot, Shakya Rinchen, who experienced the event as a four-year-old. Intensities have been estimated from his descriptions at three locations, Wangdue Phodrang, the Punakha valley and the Thimphu valley. The Gangteng Monastery in Phobjikha Valley was also severely damaged. There are records of damage reported from northeastern India at three locations, Tingkhong, Charaideo and Garhgaon. The only description of the resulting death toll is "many fatalities". [2]

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Main Himalayan Thrust</span> Geological feature

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The 1555 Kashmir earthquake occurred at around midnight in the month of Ashvin in the Hindu calendar, or September in the Gregorian calendar, although the exact day of occurrence is not known. The earthquake seriously impacted the Kashmir Valley in present-day Pakistan and northwestern India. A moment magnitude (Mw ) of 7.6 to 8.0 and Modified Mercalli intensity of XII (Extreme) has been estimated for the earthquake. Thought to be one of the most destructive in the Kashmir Valley, the earthquake caused serious widespread damage and ground effects, killing an estimated 600–60,000 individuals.

The 1889 Chilik earthquake occurred on July 11 on the Gregorian calendar, or June 30 on the Julian calendar at 15:14 local time in the Tien Shan mountains. The earthquake measured an estimated Mw  7.9–8.0 on the moment magnitude scale and was assigned a maximum intensity of X (Devastating) on the MSK 64 and Rossi-Forel scales. Over 92 people across Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and China were killed.

The 1716 Algiers earthquake was part of a seismic sequence which began in February and ended in May 1716. The largest and most destructive shock occurred on February 3 with an estimated moment magnitude of 7.0. The earthquakes with an epicenter thought to be in the Algiers region had a maximum European macroseismic scale (EMS-98) intensity of IX (Destructive), killing approximately 20,000 people. The earthquake was felt in Catania and Syracuse on the Italian island Sicily.

The 1654 Tianshui earthquake occurred on July 21 in Tianshui, Gansu Province, Ming dynasty sometime between 21:00 and 23:00 local time. The event had an estimated moment magnitude of 7.0 and was assigned a maximum intensity of XI on the China seismic intensity scale. Resulting in extreme damage and affecting at least four provinces, the quake killed approximately 30,000 people.

The 1885 Kashmir earthquake, also known as the Baramulla earthquake occurred on 30 May in Srinagar. It had an estimated moment magnitude of Mw  6.3–6.8 and maximum Medvedev–Sponheuer–Karnik scale intensity of VIII (Damaging). At least 3,081 people died and severe damage resulted.

The 1803 Garhwal earthquake occurred in the early morning of September 1 at 01:30 local time. The estimated 7.8-magnitude-earthquake had an epicenter in the Garhwal Himalaya near Uttarkashi, British India. Major damage occurred in the Himalaya and Indo-Gangetic Plain, with the loss of between 200 and 300 lives. It is among the largest Himalaya earthquakes of the 19th-century, caused by thrust faulting.

The 1980 Nepal earthquake devastated the Nepal–India border region on the evening of July 29. The epicenter of the 6.6 Mw earthquake was located in Nepal, northwest of Khaptad National Park. At least 200 people died and 5,600 were injured in the disaster. Extensive damage occurred on both sides of the border, amounting to 245 million USD.

On December 5, 1456, the largest earthquake to occur on the Italian Peninsula struck the Kingdom of Naples. The earthquake had an estimated moment magnitude of Mw  7.19–7.4, and was centred near the town of Pontelandolfo in the present-day Province of Benevento, southern Italy. Earning a level of XI (Extreme) on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale, the earthquake caused widespread destruction in central and southern Italy. An estimated 30,000–70,000 people were killed. It was followed by two strong Mw  7.0 and 6.0 earthquakes to the north on December 30.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1902 Shamakhi earthquake</span>

The 1902 Shamakhi earthquake occurred on 13 February with a surface-wave magnitude of 6.9 and a maximum felt Modified Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). Up to 2,000 people died and thousands more were injured in the Shemakha uezd within the Baku Governorate of the Russian Empire. About 7,439 buildings were damaged or destroyed in the city and surrounding villages. Shamakhi had been devastated by earlier earthquakes in 1806, 1859 and 1872. It is one of the most destructive earthquakes in Azerbaijan.

References

  1. 1 2 Zhao, Y.; Grujic, D.; Baruah, S.; Drukpa, D.; Elkadi, J.; Hetényi, G.; King, G.E.; Mildon, Z.K.; Nepal, N.; Welte, C. (2021). "Paleoseismological Findings at a New Trench Indicate the 1714 M8.1 Earthquake Ruptured the Main Frontal Thrust Over all the Bhutan Himalaya". Frontiers in Earth Science. 9. doi: 10.3389/feart.2021.689457 . hdl: 10026.1/18289 .
  2. 1 2 3 4 Hetényi, G.; Le Roux-Mallouf, R.; Berthet, T.; Cattin, R.; Cauzzi, C.; Phuntsho, K.; Grolimund, R. (2016). "Joint approach combining damage and paleoseismology observations constrains the 1714 A.D. Bhutan earthquake at magnitude 8 ± 0.5". Geophysical Research Letters. 43 (20): 10, 695–10, 702. Bibcode:2016GeoRL..4310695H. doi: 10.1002/2016GL071033 . S2CID   5931855.
  3. 1 2 Ambraseys, N.; Jackson, D. "A note on early earthquakes in northern India and southern Tibet". Current Science. 84 (4): 570–582.
  4. ↑ Avouac, J.–P.; Meng, L.; Wei, S.; Wang, T.; Ampuero, J.–P. (2015). "Lower edge of locked Main Himalayan Thrust unzipped by the 2015 Gorkha earthquake". Nature Geoscience. 8 (9): 708–711. Bibcode:2015NatGe...8..708A. doi:10.1038/ngeo2518.
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