What is a shallow earthquake that struck Delhi?

Understanding the impact of earthquake depth on damage and intensity of shaking in concise detail.

Strong tremors were felt in the national capital and adjoining regions as an earthquake of 4.0 magnitude struck the region early on Monday (February 17, 2025). The National Center for Seismology said the earthquake struck at a focal depth of five kilometres at 5:36 am.

After Delhi, NCR, tremor felt in Bihar also at 4.0 magnitude. The National Center for Seismology said the earthquake struck at a depth of 10 kilometres at 8:02 am.

Shallow earthquakes, originating five or 10 kilometres below the surface, tend to cause more damage than those originating deep below the surface.

Shallow earthquakes are between 0 to 70 km deep; intermediate earthquakes, 70 to 300 km deep; and deep earthquakes, 300 to 700 km deep.

An instance of the devastating effect of a shallow earthquake would be the 5.6 magnitude earthquake in Indonesia in Novermber 2022 that left more than 160 dead and hundreds injured as buildings crumbled and terrified residents ran for their lives on the main island of Java.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, “There is not one magnitude above which damage will occur. It depends on other variables, such as the distance from the earthquake, what type of soil you are on, building construction” and other factors.

A quake’s destructive force depends not only on its strength, but also on location, distance from the epicentre and depth.