1839 Ava earthquake

Earthquake in British India 1839 Ava earthquake 300–400 dead Yes Yes 11 Konbaung dynasty (present–day Myanmar) Sagaing Fault 7.9–8.3 w yes Le Tour du monde-02-p293.jpg 04:00 23 March 1839 1839-03-23 24:30 21.9 N 96.0 E region:PE_type:event inline,title Southeast Asia yes The 1839 Ava earthquake, also known as the Amarapura earthquake or Inwa earthquake, was a disastrous seismic event that struck present-day central Myanmar on March 23.Oldham Thomas A Catalogue of Indian Earthquakes from the earliest time to the end of AD 1869 https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=ZGVmYXVsdGRvbWFpbnxpbmRpYXF1YWtlMnxneDo3ZDFmMGNmNzM3ZjJmNGRh Memoirs of the Geological Survey of India XIX This earthquake with an estimated moment magnitude as high as 8.3, was one of the largest in the country, since 1762. It was assigned a maximum of XI (Extreme) on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale, and was felt in Rangoon and Bhamo.Significant Earthquake Information https://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/hazel/view/hazards/earthquake/event-more-info/1814 National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service (NGDC/WDS): NCEI/WDS Global Significant Earthquake Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information 1972 10.7289/V5TD9V7K National Geophysical Data Center Damage was enormous in Ava, resulting in the death of hundreds. Tectonic setting Myanmar is wedged between four tectonic plates; the Indian, Eurasian, Sunda, and Burma plates, that interact due to active geological processes. Along the west coast of the Coco Islands, off the Rahkine coast, and into Bangladesh, is a highly oblique convergent boundary known as the Sunda megathrust. This large fault marks the boundary between the Indian and Burma plates. The megathrust emerges from the seafloor in Bangladesh, where it runs parallel and east of the Chin Hills. This boundary continues to north of Burma where it ends at the eastern Himalayas.Wang Yu 2013 Earthquake Geology of Myanmar Ph.D. California Institute of Technology 10.7907/XWW2-9P26 https://thesis.library.caltech.edu/7853/ 2025-05-03 2022-03-08 https://web.archive.org/web/20250503063241/https://thesis.library.caltech.edu/7853/ dead The Sagaing Fault is a mostly continental transform fault that runs through Burma and connects the Andaman spreading center to the collision zone in the north. It accommodates motion between the Burma and Sunda plates as they slide past each other at a rate of 18 to 49 mm/yr. The fault runs the entire length of the country for over 1,200 km and continues its trace into the Andaman Sea. The Sagaing Fault is Burma's largest and most active source of seismic threat, running through or close to major cities like Yangon, Nay Pyi Daw and Mandalay. Several large and damaging earthquakes have occurred on this fault in historical times. In 1946 the 180 km long Sagaing segment produced two major earthquakes but there are no records of its impact. Ten years later, in 1956, a magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck close to the city of Mandalay, re-rupturing the 1839 rupture zone for about 60 km.Soe Thura Tun Ian M. Watkinson The Sagaing Fault, Myanmar Geological Society, London, Memoirs 15 November 2017 48 413–441 10.1144/M48.19 134291037 https://mem.lyellcollection.org/content/48/1/413/tab-figures-data 23 March 2021 subscription Meanwhile, the 260 km long Meiktila segment has not experienced any major earthquake since 1839 and is considered a seismic gap. This seismic gap ruptured during a w 7.7 earthquake on 28 March 2025.Li Bo Jónsson Sigurjón Suhendi Cahli Liu Jihong Li Duo Delorme Arthur Klinger Yann Mai Paul Martin Seismic gap breached by the 2025 Mw 7.7 Mandalay (Myanmar) earthquake Nature Geoscience 2025 18 1287–1295 10.1038/s41561-025-01861-7 Earthquake The Meiktila and Sagaing segment of the fault ruptured during this earthquake for a length of 400 km, corresponding to a magnitude 8.1–8.3 earthquake, although little research has been conducted to provide further constraints.Yu Wang Active Tectonics and Earthquake Potential of the Myanmar region https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260802804 Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 2014 119 4 3767 10.1002/2013JB010762 2014JGRB..119.3767W free 10220/19774 free On the basis for its overall lack of seismic activity, the Meiktila segment is believed to have ruptured during the earthquake. This segment runs from Nay Pyi Taw to Mandalay, a length of about 260 km.Tapponnier Paul Kerry Kerry The Catastrophe in Haiti: A Repeat Lesson for Us all RSIS Commentaries 21 January 2010 https://dr.ntu.edu.sg/bitstream/10220/6562/1/RSIS0092010.pdf 23 March 2021 Nanyang Technological University 23 March 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20230323121509/https://dr.ntu.edu.sg/bitstream/10220/6562/1/RSIS0092010.pdf dead Thant Htoo Govt unveils quake preparedness plan https://www.mmtimes.com/news/govt-unveils-quake-preparedness-plan.html 23 March 2021 The Myanmar Times 7 August 2019 24 June 2021 https://web.archive.org/web/20210624205327/https://www.mmtimes.com/news/govt-unveils-quake-preparedness-plan.html dead Remote sensing and field observation revealed a maximum displacement of 5–7 m along the trace of the 1839 rupture just outside Mandalay. This would place the magnitude at 7.4–8.0+ and generate a ~300 km rupture.Morphotectonics of the Central Sagaing fault West of Mandalay: Trace of the 1839 Ava Earthquake Rupture https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm14/webprogram/Paper20751.html AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts 16 December 2014 2014AGUFM.T24B..04W 23 March 2021 Wang Y. Tapponnier P. Aung T. Tun S. T. Khaing S. N. Aung L. T. Sieh K. 2014 Xinhua Myanmar setting up global positioning system for earthquake monitoring http://en.people.cn/90001/90777/90851/6823551.html 23 March 2021 People's Daily 25 November 2009 22 March 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160322200555/http://en.people.cn/90001/90777/90851/6823551.html dead Researchers at National Taiwan University combined lidar and macroseismic data from historic accounts to estimate its magnitude at ~w 7.9 and rupture length to be 285–325 km. The 1839 earthquake ruptured two segments; the Meiktila segment in the south and Sagaing segment in the north. They estimated 5.5 m of displacement on the Sagaing segment while slip on the Meiktila segment was around 3.8 m. The felt area based on the Modified Mercalli intensity was larger than the 1912 Maymyo earthquake (w 7.7) and similar in area to the 2002 Denali earthquake (w 7.9). The maximum assigned Modified Mercalli intensity was XI (Extreme).Wu Sheng-Han Yóu dìbiǎo pòliè yǔ zhèndù jìlù chóngjiàn 1839 miǎndiàn ā wǎ dìzhèn zhī guīmó zh:由地表破裂與震度紀錄重建1839緬甸阿瓦地震之規模 Re-estimating the magnitude of 1839 Ava earthquake through geomorphic mapping and macroseismic records, central Myanmar Masters 2022 10.6342/ntu202203906 Department of Geosciences, College of Sciences, National Taiwan University Impact The mainshock was preceded by a large foreshock in 1838, which also damaged the capital.Significant Earthquake Information MYANMAR (BURMA): AVA (INNWA) https://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/hazel/view/hazards/earthquake/event-more-info/1805 NGDC NCEI 23 March 2021 The damage reported in Inwa was so severe that the formal capital was moved to nearby Amarapura. In Mingun, a stupa sustained serious damage as a result of shaking. British officials in Myanmar recorded catastrophic damage and liquefaction in Mandalay and the surrounding area.2003 Some Documents of Tharrawaddy's Reign: 1837–1846, Part I https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=ZGVmYXVsdGRvbWFpbnxpbmRpYXF1YWtlMnxneDozYjAzYWY4ZDNmYzAzNGY0 SOAS Bulletin of Burma Research 11839 Burmah https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=ZGVmYXVsdGRvbWFpbnxpbmRpYXF1YWtlMnxneDo3MzFhODVkNzhhNzE0ZGVh The Asiatic Journal XXX Many pagodas collapsed during the event. Chasms and fissures more than 10 ft wide were seen in Amarapura and nearly every brick building was reduced to rubble. Some villages were swallowed up as a result of liquefaction. By a contemporary British estimate, about 300–400 people died. The shock also reversed the flow of the Irrawaddy River, where the currents became violent and overflowed its banks. It was felt for thousands of miles away from the epicenter, as far as Dhaka, Kolkata, and Bangkok. Gallery See also 2025 Myanmar earthquake List of earthquakes in Myanmar List of historical earthquakes References collapsed Category:Earthquakes in Myanmar Category:Earthquakes in Asia Category:19th century in Burma Category:British rule in Burma Category:1839 earthquakes Category:1839 natural disasters Category:1830s disasters in Asia Category:Strike-slip earthquakes Category:March 1839