January 31, 1977 Earthquake: Tajikistan
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck Tajikistan on January 31, 1977 at 14:26:14 UTC, 20 km below the surface.
Map
Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Date
- January 31, 1977
- Time
- 14:26:14 UTC
- Place
- Tajikistan
- Magnitude
- 5.9 (Ms)
- Magnitude scales
- Ms 5.9 · mb 6.1 · Unspecified 5.9
- Focal depth
- 20 km (12 mi)
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 40.040° N, 70.850° E
- Country
- Tajikistan
- Region
- Central Asia and Caucasus
- USGS record
- The USGS’s page for this earthquake
Ms: surface-wave magnitude. mb: body-wave (P-wave) magnitude. Unspecified: the method was not stated in the published sources. NCEI’s headline magnitude is the best of these for the earthquake.
The toll
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 million)
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.
Magnitude estimates
The magnitudes the USGS catalog lists for this earthquake, by scale and by who computed them. NCEI’s own scales are in the table above.
| Mag. | Scale | Computed by | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.1 | mb, body-wave | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Preferred · Reviewed |
| 5.99 | Mw, moment | ISC-GEM global catalog | Final · ±0.1 |
| 6.0 | Mwc, centroid moment | Global CMT project | Preliminary |
Sources NCEI cites
The publications NCEI lists for this record. The numbers match the “reference #” notes in its account above.
- #1140 U.S. Geological Survey. Earthquake Information Bulletin, a bimonthly U.S. Geological Survey publication; H. Spall, editor.
- #1053 National Earthquake Information Center (NEIC) (1971 to 2013). Preliminary Determination of Epicenters (PDE), a weekly and monthly publication, National Earthquake Information Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Golden, Colorado, 1971 to 2013.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- November 23, 838, Fergana, Uzbekistan
- December 16, 1902, Andizhan, Uzbekistan
- July 10, 1949, Tajikistan
- April 12, 2002, Do Abi-Nahrin, Tajikistan, Afghanistan
- October 13, 1985, Kaptolyuk, Kayrakkum, Gafurov, Tajikistan
- July 19, 2011, Fargona, Violyati, Uzbekistan
- July 21, 2007, Rasht, Asht, Tajikistan
- April 26, 1966, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
- July 10, 2021, Rasht, Tojikobod, Tajikistan
- May 15, 1992, Andizhan, Osh, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan
- January 9, 2002, Roghun, Tajikistan
- April 13, 2025, Rasht, Tajikistan
- May 12, 2012, Tajikistan
- July 11, 1980, Shurab, Nefteabad, Tajikistan
- January 8, 2007, Isfaria, Kyrgyzstan
More
Significant earthquakes of 1977The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1977Recent earthquakes near hereThis day in weather history
Sources
Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-10-01. NCEI earthquake 4759. The written accounts and the magnitude estimates are from the USGS earthquake catalog, event usp0000me4, matched to this record by time, place and magnitude.