Reviewed by USGSJapan98y ago
M6.9 earthquake 31 km ESE of Miyazaki, Japan
Tuesday, May 21, 1929, 16:35:34 UTC · 31.855°N, 131.743°E
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck 31 km ESE of Miyazaki, Japan on Tuesday, May 21, 1929, 16:35:34 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.4 on July 13, 1923.
- Magnitude
- 6.9
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 35 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VI
- Strong (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
304 kilotons of TNT
That is about 20 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 638 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
11 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Amur and Okinawa plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
35 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 100 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 24 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.518 km SE of Honmachi, JapanNovember 10, 1909 · 111 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.4152 km ESE of Koshima, JapanFebruary 1, 1916 · 261 km S of this epicenter
- 7.422 km N of Nishinoomote, JapanJuly 13, 1923 · 123 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.229 km ESE of Takanabe, JapanApril 13, 1913 · 20 km N of this epicenter
- 7.161 km ESE of Nishinoomote, JapanAugust 24, 1904 · 155 km S of this epicenter
- 6.931 km SSW of Hikari, JapanJune 2, 1905 · 207 km N of this epicenter
- 6.88 km NNE of Kajiki, JapanJanuary 12, 1914 · 100 km W of this epicenter
- 6.8117 km S of Fukuechō, JapanJune 3, 1928 · 268 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 16 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 15,151 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1792M6.4
Kyusyu Island
21 May 1792 · 172 km away
15,030 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1914M7.1
Sakurijima
12 Jan 1914 · 106 km away
63 deaths$19 million damagetsunami
- 1922
Kyushu
7 Dec 1922 · 165 km away
27 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1889M6.3
Kumamoto
28 Jul 1889 · 144 km away
20 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1905M7.8
Aki
2 Jun 1905 · 240 km away
11 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1769M7.4
Sw. Kyushu Island, Japan
29 Aug 1769 · 55 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.