Reviewed by USGSJapan119y ago
M7.1 earthquake 150 km ESE of Hasaki, Japan
Saturday, March 13, 1909, 14:28:59 UTC · 35.267°N, 142.387°E
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck 150 km ESE of Hasaki, Japan on Saturday, March 13, 1909, 14:28:59 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.3 on September 7, 1906.
- Magnitude
- 7.1
- Major · mw
- Depth
- 15 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- V
- Moderate (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
697 kilotons of TNT
That is about 46 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 1,462 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
17 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Pacific and Okhotsk plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
15 km
Shallow earthquakes (under 70 km) produce the strongest surface shaking for their size, so they are the ones most likely to cause damage near the epicenter.
Did You Feel It?
Where it was felt
No “Did You Feel It?” reports have been published for this event yet. If you felt it, you can add your report on the USGS website.
I felt it — report to USGS ↗USGS PAGER estimate
Who was exposed to shaking
USGS publishes PAGER impact estimates for significant earthquakes, usually within an hour. No PAGER estimate is available for this event.
After the main event
Aftershocks within 200 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 200 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 5 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.3190 km SE of Hasaki, JapanSeptember 7, 1906 · 60 km S of this epicenter
- 7.082 km ENE of Hasaki, JapanMarch 12, 1909 · 93 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.870 km E of Namie, JapanJanuary 15, 1908 · 264 km N of this epicenter
- 6.6132 km ESE of Iwaki, JapanApril 8, 1906 · 162 km N of this epicenter
- 6.3116 km ESE of Katsuura, JapanFebruary 24, 1906 · 113 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 13 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 12,150 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1855M7.0
Tokyo
11 Nov 1855 · 238 km away
6,757 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1703M8.2
Off Sw Boso Peninsula
30 Dec 1703 · 219 km away
5,233 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1853
Odawara
11 Mar 1853 · 263 km away
79 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1905M7.0
Off Fukushima
6 Jul 1905 · 238 km away
57 deathstsunami
- 1894M7.5
Tokyo
20 Jun 1894 · 230 km away
24 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1835M7.6
Sanriku
20 Jul 1835 · 296 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.