Reviewed by USGSJapan99y ago
M6.8 earthquake 117 km S of Fukuechō, Japan
Sunday, June 3, 1928, 08:31:03 UTC · 31.640°N, 128.923°E
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck 117 km S of Fukuechō, Japan on Sunday, June 3, 1928, 08:31:03 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.0 on November 3, 1923.
- Magnitude
- 6.8
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 10 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- —
- No ShakeMap
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 100 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
201 kilotons of TNT
That is about 13 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 422 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
1 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Amur and Yangtze plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
10 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 lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.8 on June 5, 1928. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 20 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.9108 km NW of Naze, JapanJune 15, 1911 · 278 km S of this epicenter
- 7.518 km SE of Honmachi, JapanNovember 10, 1909 · 192 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.422 km N of Nishinoomote, JapanJuly 13, 1923 · 215 km E of this epicenter
- 7.229 km ESE of Takanabe, JapanApril 13, 1913 · 275 km E of this epicenter
- 7.161 km ESE of Nishinoomote, JapanAugust 24, 1904 · 283 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.0152 km NW of Uken, JapanJuly 4, 1914 · 284 km S of this epicenter
- 7.093 km NNE of Naze, JapanNovember 3, 1923 · 299 km S of this epicenter
- 6.88 km NNE of Kajiki, JapanJanuary 12, 1914 · 168 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 12 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 16,140 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1792M6.4
Kyusyu Island
21 May 1792 · 183 km away
15,030 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1700M7.0
Tsushima, Nagasaki Prefecture
16 Apr 1700 · 287 km away
1,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1914M7.1
Sakurijima
12 Jan 1914 · 166 km away
63 deaths$19 million damagetsunami
- 1922
Kyushu
7 Dec 1922 · 175 km away
27 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1889M6.3
Kumamoto
28 Jul 1889 · 211 km away
20 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1769M7.4
Sw. Kyushu Island, Japan
29 Aug 1769 · 299 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.