Reviewed by USGSJapan104y ago
M7.2 earthquake 101 km NE of Naze, Japan
Monday, November 5, 1923, 21:28:03 UTC · 28.926°N, 130.311°E
A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck 101 km NE of Naze, Japan on Monday, November 5, 1923, 21:28:03 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
- 7.2
- Major · mw
- Depth
- 35 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 200 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
888 kilotons of TNT
That is about 59 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 1,862 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
93 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Okinawa and Philippine Sea 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 200 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 200 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.5 on November 6, 1923. 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 18 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 · 149 km W of this epicenter
- 7.4152 km ESE of Koshima, JapanFebruary 1, 1916 · 165 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.422 km N of Nishinoomote, JapanJuly 13, 1923 · 233 km N of this epicenter
- 7.2Ryukyu Islands, JapanJune 24, 1901 · 107 km S of this epicenter
- 7.161 km ESE of Nishinoomote, JapanAugust 24, 1904 · 210 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.0152 km NW of Uken, JapanJuly 4, 1914 · 222 km W of this epicenter
- 7.093 km NNE of Naze, JapanNovember 3, 1923 · 40 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.786 km SE of Koshima, JapanNovember 28, 1914 · 103 km NE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 5 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 75 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1914M7.1
Sakurijima
12 Jan 1914 · 297 km away
63 deaths$19 million damagetsunami
- 1911M8.0
Ryukyu Islands
15 Jun 1911 · 107 km away
12 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1901M7.9
Ryukyu Islands
24 Jun 1901 · 216 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1916M8.0
Duda
1 Feb 1916 · 132 km away
- 1904M7.9
Kyushu
24 Aug 1904 · 123 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.