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Jan 3, 2024 · TOKYO — A powerful earthquake struck western Japan on New Year’s Day, killing dozens of people, destroying homes and triggering fears of greater harm from aftershocks, tsunamis and landslides....
- Michelle Ye Hee Lee
Apr 15, 2016 · A magnitude-7.0 earthquake struck southern Japan today, less than two days after a 6.2-magnitude temblor rocked the same region, triggering tsunami advisories in the area. Why do so many ...
Jan 24, 2024 · On Jan. 1, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck the western side of Japan on the Noto Peninsula, killing over 200 people. Japan is prone to earthquakes, including a magnitude 9.1 earthquake in 2011 that triggered a tsunami and killed almost 20,000 people.
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This week, a series of powerful earthquakes struck the west coast of Japan, killing dozens of people and reducing many buildings to rubble.
A magnitude-7.6 earthquake hit Ishikawa prefecture on the country’s main island, Honshu, on 1 January. It was the strongest quake to occur in the prefecture in more than a century. “It’s probably one of the largest earthquakes on the west coast of Japan,” says Takuya Nishimura, an earthquake scientist at Kyoto University in Japan.
The massive earthquake prompted tsunami warnings, with ocean waves reaching more than 1 metre high in some areas along the coastline. By the following morning, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) had recorded a further 146 smaller earthquakes on Ishikawa’s Noto Peninsula, including one that the US Geological Survey (USGS) measured at a magnitude of 6.2. The tremors have resulted in more than 60 deaths, with reports of dozens more expected as rescue teams search through the rubble.
Japan is one of the most earthquake-prone countries in the world, because it sits on top of four converging tectonic plates that constantly grind together. Some 1,500 earthquakes strike the country every year, although the majority are too mild to be felt. Most major earthquakes in Japan are caused by the Pacific Plate off the east coast, which slides beneath another plate. This subduction was the driving force behind Japan’s largest ever recorded earthquake — a magnitude-9.1 quake that struck the Tohoku region in 2011 and triggered a massive tsunami — says Yoshihiro Hiramatsu, a seismologist at Kanazawa University in Japan.
AI predicts how many earthquake aftershocks will strike — and their strength
- Gemma Conroy
Jan 2, 2024 · Japan accounts for about 20 per cent of the world’s earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater and each year experiences up to 2,000 quakes which can be felt by people. The country is located along...
Jan 2, 2024 · 2 January 2024. By Jonathan Amos,Science correspondent. EPA. The earthquake, which took place on New Year's Day, has left a trail of destruction across Ishikawa Prefecture. The power of the...
Jan 3, 2024 · Japan and its surrounding area account for 18 percent of earthquakes in the world because of the active tectonics, said Saeko Kita, seismologist at the International Institute of Seismology and...
