Written by on . Last updated December 2nd, 2024.

Under land 22 kilometer from Zharkent in Kazakhstan, a MAG-4.5 earthquake occurred in the night of Tuesday November 26th, 2024. Other nearby countries are China and Kyrgyzstan.

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Earthquake Summary

The earthquake struck on land in Kazakhstan, 22 kilometer (14 mi) northwest of Zharkent in Almaty Oblysy. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 45 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time: Nov 26, 2024 00:42 (Almaty Time)
- Nov 25, 2024 18:42 Universal Time.
Location: 22 km NW of Zharkent, Almaty Oblysy, Kazakhstan.
Coordinates 44°19'5"N 79°49'21"E.
Map: Map of area around epicenter.
Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude: MAG 4.5
Detected by 29 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.058 .
Depth: 45 km (28 mi)
A quite shallow depth.
Tsunami Risk: Tsunami very unlikely
While this was a shallow earthquake, it appears to have occurred under land with a magnitude not strong enough to cause tsunami's.
Always stay cautious - More info here.

Nearby towns and cities

Kazakhstan , China and Kyrgyzstan are all located within 300km distance of the epicenter of the earthquake.

Zharkent in Almaty Oblysy, Kazakhstan is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 22 kilometer (14 mi) northwest of Zharkent.

Major cities near this earthquake: Almaty is located 262 km to the west-southwest. Huocheng is located 89 km to the east-southeast. Yili is located 131 km to the east-southeast.

A complete list of nearby places is included below.

Overview of nearby places

Distance Place
22 km (14 mi)
SE from epicenter
Zharkent

Almaty Oblysy, Kazakhstan.
89 km (55 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Huocheng

Xinjiang, China.
106 km (66 mi)
NW from epicenter
Tekeli

Almaty Oblysy, Kazakhstan.
116 km (72 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Qapqal

Xinjiang, China.
120 km (75 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Bayandai

Xinjiang, China.
122 km (76 mi)
N from epicenter
Sarkand

Almaty Oblysy, Kazakhstan.
125 km (78 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Dadamtu

Xinjiang, China.
128 km (80 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Taxkowrük

Xinjiang, China.
131 km (81 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Yili

Xinjiang, China.
132 km (82 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Panjim

Xinjiang, China.
134 km (83 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Hudiyuzi

Xinjiang, China.
138 km (86 mi)
NW from epicenter
Taldykorgan

Almaty Oblysy, Kazakhstan.
142 km (88 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Jelilyüzi

Xinjiang, China.
148 km (92 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Arewusitang

Xinjiang, China.
152 km (94 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Yuqunweng

Xinjiang, China.
155 km (96 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Awuliya

Xinjiang, China.
160 km (99 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Yengitam

Xinjiang, China.
165 km (103 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Onyar

Xinjiang, China.
172 km (107 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Baytokay

Xinjiang, China.
174 km (108 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Weiwu'eryuqiwen

Xinjiang, China.
176 km (109 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Samuyuzi

Xinjiang, China.
179 km (111 mi)
NW from epicenter
Ushtobe

Almaty Oblysy, Kazakhstan.
180 km (112 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Kax

Xinjiang, China.
189 km (117 mi)
ENE from epicenter
Bole

Xinjiang, China.
218 km (135 mi)
WSW from epicenter
Esik

Almaty Oblysy, Kazakhstan.
226 km (140 mi)
WSW from epicenter
Konayev

Almaty Oblysy, Kazakhstan.
234 km (145 mi)
SSW from epicenter
Karakol

Issyk-Kul, Kyrgyzstan.
236 km (147 mi)
WSW from epicenter
Talghar

Almaty Oblysy, Kazakhstan.
246 km (153 mi)
WSW from epicenter
Otegen Batyra

Almaty Oblysy, Kazakhstan.
261 km (162 mi)
WSW from epicenter
Burunday

Almaty Oblysy, Kazakhstan.
262 km (163 mi)
WSW from epicenter
Almaty

Almaty, Kazakhstan.
264 km (164 mi)
SSW from epicenter
Kyzyl-Suu

Issyk-Kul, Kyrgyzstan.
289 km (180 mi)
SW from epicenter
Cholpon-Ata

Issyk-Kul, Kyrgyzstan.
292 km (181 mi)
ESE from epicenter
Xinyuan

Xinjiang, China.
Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.

Shaking reported by 4 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 4 people have reported shaking in 3 places, all within Kazakhstan.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

  • Taldıķorğan, Almaty, Kazakhstan: 2 people.
  • Almaty, Almaty, Kazakhstan: 1 person.
  • Tuyuk, Almaty, Kazakhstan: 1 person.

Risk of aftershocks?

We have not yet detected any foreshocks or aftershocks (MAG-2.5 or higher) within 100km (62 mi) of this earthquake.

Earthquakes can create aftershocks. These are generally at least 1 magnitude lower than any main shock, and as time passes the chance and strength of aftershocks decreases.

In only six percent of cases, significant earthquakes are followed by a larger main shock, making the current earthquake a foreshock. While the chance of this happening is not so large, it is adviced to maintain cautiousness in the hours and days following a major earthquake.

Read: How to Stay Safe during an Earthquake (cdc.gov).

Earthquakes like this happen often in the region

Earthquakes of this strength are very common in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since November 23rd, 2024, when a 4.6 magnitude earthquake hit 232 km (144 mi) further south-southeast. An even stronger magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck on August 8th, 2017.

In total, 79 earthquakes with a magnitude of 4.5 or higher have been registered within 300km (186 mi) of this epicenter in the past 10 years. This comes down to an average of once every 2 months.

Tsunami very unlikely

DISCLAIMER: We strongly suggest to closely monitor advice from local authorities with regards to tsunami risks. Our analysis is based on automatically collected data from external sources, and these might contain mistakes. In addition, earthquakes can cause landslides that may lead to a tsunami, or be a followed by another, potentially stonger, earthquake.

While MAG-6.5+ earthquakes may cause tsunami's, it appears that the epicenter of this earthquake hit under land. In addition, the reported depth is deeper than 100km, making the risk of a tsunami even less likely. However always stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Factor Under Sea? MAG-6.5 or stronger? Shallow depth?
Explanation Almost all tsunami's are caused by earthquakes with their epicenter under sea or very near the sea. However stay cautious in coastal areas as earthquakes on land may cause landslides into sea, potentially still causing a local tsunami. Under MAG 6.5: Very unlikely to cause a tsunami.
MAG 6.5 to 7.5: Destructive tsunami's do occur, but are uncommon. Likely to observe small sea level changes.
MAG 7.6+: Earthquakes with these magnitudes might produce destructive tsunami's.
Most destructive tsunami's are caused by shallow earthquakes with a depth between 0 and 100km under the surface of the earth. Deeper tsunami's are unlikely to displace to ocean floor.
This Earthquake Not this earthquake.
This earthquake appears to have struck on land far from any coast.
Not this earthquake.
This earthquake had a magnitude of 4.5. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.
This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 45 km (28 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 02/12/24 18:28 (). This article is automatically generated based on available data. We keep checking multiple sources for additional information. This article gets updated as new details on this earthquake become available.

  1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us7000nu3e
  2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20241125_0000205
  3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
  4. Google Maps: Static API
  5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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