QuakeScout
Magnitude6.5

Reviewed by USGSJapan105y ago

M6.5 earthquake 130 km SSE of Shizunai-furukawachō, Japan

Monday, May 15, 1922, 20:21:32 UTC · 41.227°N, 142.904°E

A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck 130 km SSE of Shizunai-furukawachō, Japan on Monday, May 15, 1922, 20:21:32 UTC, at a depth of 30.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.6 on March 3, 1921.

Magnitude
6.5
Strong · mw
Depth
30 km
Shallow
Felt reports
0
Did You Feel It?
Est. shaking
IV
Light (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

74 kilotons of TNT

That is about 5 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 155 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

136 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Pacific and Okhotsk plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.

Depth: shallow

30 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 32 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 7.7277 km SSE of Kushiro, JapanMay 3, 1919 · 237 km E of this epicenter
  2. 7.6119 km SE of Kamaishi, JapanNovember 1, 1915 · 286 km S of this epicenter
  3. 7.5Near the east coast of Honshu, JapanAugust 9, 1901 · 86 km SW of this epicenter
  4. 7.2Near the east coast of Honshu, JapanAugust 9, 1901 · 88 km SW of this epicenter
  5. 7.1123 km SE of Honchō, JapanJuly 29, 1917 · 71 km E of this epicenter
  6. 7.013 km ESE of Yokote, JapanMarch 14, 1914 · 286 km SW of this epicenter
  7. 7.0Off the east coast of Honshu, JapanMay 2, 1902 · 265 km S of this epicenter
  8. 7.0Near the east coast of Honshu, JapanJune 15, 1901 · 248 km S of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 29 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 29,247 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1896M8.3

    Sanriku

    15 Jun 1896 · 213 km away

    27,122 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami

  2. 1766M6.9

    Hirosaki

    8 Mar 1766 · 188 km away

    1,700 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  3. 1896

    Senhoku, Ugo

    31 Aug 1896 · 211 km away

    206 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)

  4. 1810M6.6

    Oga

    25 Sep 1810 · 294 km away

    59 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  5. 1704

    N Of Nosiro

    27 May 1704 · 286 km away

    58 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

  6. 1843M8.4

    Hokkaido: Yezo, Kushiro, Nemuro

    25 Apr 1843 · 271 km away

    45 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

Nearby trackers

Closest city pages