Southern Asia
What tectonic plate is Nepal on?
Nepal spans 2 tectonic plates: the Eurasian Plate (80%) and the Indian Plate (20%).
- Plates
- 2
- M6.5+ quakes since 1900
- 11
- Holocene volcanoes
- 0
- Land area
- 147,194 km²
Plates under Nepal
Share of Nepal's land area on each plate (PB2002 model, Natural Earth outlines).
Plate boundaries
A plate boundary runs through or along Nepal: the Eurasian-Indian boundary (convergent, about 4.7 cm/yr).
The fastest of these is the Eurasian-Indian boundary, where the plates move about 4.7 cm/yr relative to each other. That is faster than fingernails grow.
Earthquakes in Nepal
Nepal has frequent large earthquakes: 11 of magnitude 6.5 or more struck in or just off the country since 1900 (rank 44 of 213).
| Earthquake | Magnitude | Year | Depth | Plate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bihar-Nepal Earthquake | M8.0 | 1934 | 15 km | Eurasian |
| 67 km NNE of Bharatpur, Nepal | M7.8 | 2015 | 8 km | Eurasian |
| Nepal | M7.3 | 2015 | 15 km | Eurasian |
| 21 km SE of Dārchulā, Nepal | M7.0 | 1916 | 20 km | Eurasian |
| 9 km WSW of Triyuga, Nepal | M6.9 | 1988 | 57 km | Eurasian |
| Near Nepal | M6.9 | 1936 | 15 km | Eurasian |
Volcanoes in Nepal
Nepal has no volcanoes that have erupted in the last 12,000 years, according to the Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program.
Frequently asked questions
What tectonic plate is Nepal on?
Nepal spans 2 tectonic plates: the Eurasian Plate (80%) and the Indian Plate (20%).
Is Nepal on a plate boundary?
A plate boundary runs through or along Nepal: the Eurasian-Indian boundary (convergent, about 4.7 cm/yr).
Does Nepal get earthquakes?
Nepal has frequent large earthquakes: 11 of magnitude 6.5 or more struck in or just off the country since 1900 (rank 44 of 213). The largest was the M8.0 Bihar-Nepal Earthquake in 1934.
Are there volcanoes in Nepal?
Nepal has no volcanoes that have erupted in the last 12,000 years, according to the Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program.