Shallow M5.8 earthquake hits NW China, Yellow alert for economic losses issued
A shallow earthquake registered by the USGS as M5.8 struck southern Xinjiang, China at 07:44 UTC (13:44 local time) on December 4, 2025. The agency is reporting a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). The USGS issued a Green alert for shaking-related fatalities and a Yellow alert for economic losses.
Epicenter of M5.8 earthquake in southern Xinjiang, China on December 4, 2025. Credit: TW/SAM, Google
The epicenter was located 138 km (86 miles) NNW of Tumxuk (population 135 000) and 154 km (96 miles) ENE of Aksu (population 535 000), southern Xinjiang, China. Nearby settlements include Aykol, Kyzyl-Suu, and Karakol.
4 000 people are estimated to have felt very strong shaking, 15 000 strong, 14 000 moderate, and 1 951 000 light.
The USGS issued a Green alert for shaking-related fatalities and a Yellow alert for economic losses. Some damage is possible and the impact should be relatively localized. Estimated economic losses are less than 1% of GDP of China.
Past events with this alert level have required a local or regional level response. Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are vulnerable to earthquake shaking, though resistant structures exist. The predominant vulnerable building types are adobe block and log construction.
Little or no landsliding is expected, but some landslides could have occurred in highly susceptible areas. The number of people living near areas that could have produced landslides in this earthquake is limited.
Estimated population exposure to earthquake shaking
Selected cities exposed
Regional seismicity
References:
1 M5.8 earthquake southern Xinjiang, China — USGS — December 4, 2025
2 M5.8 earthquake southern Xinjiang, China — EMSC — December 4, 2025
I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.
Commenting rules and guidelines
We value the thoughts and opinions of our readers and welcome healthy discussions on our website. In order to maintain a respectful and positive community, we ask that all commenters follow these rules.