Reviewed by USGSJapan113y ago
M7.2 earthquake 98 km SSW of Ishigaki, Japan
Sunday, February 28, 1915, 18:59:11 UTC · 23.582°N, 123.668°E
A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck 98 km SSW of Ishigaki, Japan on Sunday, February 28, 1915, 18:59:11 UTC, at a depth of 20.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.3 on January 5, 1915.
- Magnitude
- 7.2
- Major · mw
- Depth
- 20 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
985 kilotons of TNT
That is about 65 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 2,065 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
15 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
20 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 19 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.11910 Taiwan EarthquakeApril 12, 1910 · 273 km N of this epicenter
- 7.392 km NNW of Yonakuni, JapanJanuary 5, 1915 · 208 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.2108 km E of Hengchun, TaiwanJanuary 11, 1908 · 255 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.9136 km S of Hualien City, TaiwanNovember 14, 1910 · 211 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.813 km ENE of Hualien City, TaiwanNovember 21, 1909 · 202 km W of this epicenter
- 6.8TaiwanSeptember 1, 1910 · 264 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.859 km NE of Hirara, JapanNovember 29, 1910 · 273 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.73 km WSW of Banqiao, TaiwanApril 14, 1909 · 276 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 9 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 14,216 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1771M7.4
Ryukyu Islands
24 Apr 1771 · 79 km away
13,486 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1867M7.0
Chilung (Keelung)
18 Dec 1867 · 264 km away
580 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1910M7.8
Taiwan
12 Apr 1910 · 244 km away
60 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1897M6.0
Yilan
19 Mar 1897 · 227 km away · intensity VIII
56 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1811M7.0
Danshui: Off West Coast
18 Mar 1811 · 300 km away
21 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1909M7.3
Taipei
14 Apr 1909 · 270 km away
9 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.