M7.7 earthquake 31 km SSW of Wuwei, China
A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck 31 km SSW of Wuwei, China on Mon, May 23, 1927, 6:32 AM GMT+8 (22:32 UTC), 15 km (9 mi) below the surface.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 7.7 (mw), major
- Local time
- UTC
- 1927-05-22 22:32:50 UTC
- Depth
- 15.0 km (9.3 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 37.666° N, 102.493° E
- Region
- China
- Strongest shaking
- VII, very strong shaking
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Deaths and damage
From NOAA NCEI’s Significant Earthquake Database (record 3315), matched to this event by time and place.
- Deaths
- 40,912
- Injuries
- 524
- Damage
- Extreme (about $25 million or more)
- Houses destroyed
- 26,674
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
Shaking
The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.
- Strongest estimated
- VII, very strong shaking
- Peak ground acceleration
- 29.4% of gravity
- Peak ground velocity
- 3.7 cm/s
- Map
- Automatic
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.30
- Depth from
- From location
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 4.7 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 6.077 km SE of Wuwei, China · 36289 days ago · 15 km deep · 77 km away
- 6.075 km WSW of Wuwei, China · 36289 days ago · 15 km deep · 57 km away
- 5.886 km WSW of Wuwei, China · 36289 days ago · 15 km deep · 66 km away
- 5.629 km SSW of Wuwei, China · 36288 days ago · 15 km deep · 5 km away
- 6.039 km SW of Jinchang, China · 36258 days ago · 15 km deep · 81 km away
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Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event iscgem909273. Read Tue, Sep 29, 2026, 11:39 AM UTC.