Significant M5.0 Earthquake hit in the Philippine Sea near Shingū (Japan) on Wednesday Morning.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on June 20th, 2023. Last updated August 19th, 2023.

In the morning of Wednesday June 21st, 2023, a significant MAG-5.0 earthquake hit in the Philippine Sea 8 kilometer from Shingū, Japan.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the Philippine Sea, right off the coast of Japan (3 mi offshore), 8 kilometer east of Shingū in Wakayama. The center of this earthquake had a deep depth of 410 km.

Date and Time:	Jun 21, 2023 08:33 (Tokyo Time) - Jun 20, 2023 23:33 Universal Time.
Location:	8 km east of Shingū, Wakayama, Japan. Coordinates 33°43'40"N 136°4'17"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.0 Detected by 11 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.093 .
Depth:	410 km (255 mi) A deep depth.
Tsunami Risk:	Tsunami very unlikely Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 at depths deeper than 100km are very unlikely to cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Japan . The closest significant population center near the earthquake is Shingū in Wakayama, Japan. Shingū is located 8 kilometer (5 mi) east of the epicenter.

Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. Osaka is located 119 km to the north-northwest. Nagoya is located 179 km to the north-northeast. Kobe is located 135 km to the northwest.

The table below provides an overview of all places in proximity of today's earthquake.

Overview of nearby places

Risk of aftershocks?

We monitor for foreshocks or aftershocks that have a magnitude of 2.5+ and occur within 100km (62 mi) of the epicenter of this earthquake. So far no such earthquakes have been detected.

Aftershocks are usually at least 1 order of magnitude less strong than main shocks. The more time passes, the smaller the chance and likely strength of any potential aftershocks.

The chance that a significant earthquake like this one is followed by an even larger earthquake is not so large. On average, scientists estimate a 94% chance that a major earthquake will not be followed by an even larger one. It is still adviced to be aware of this risk

Earthquakes like this happen often in the region

Earthquakes of this strength are very common in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since May 14th, 2023, when a 5.1 magnitude earthquake hit 292 km (182 mi) further east. An even stronger magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck on July 27th, 2019.

In total, 24 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5 or higher have been registered within 300km (186 mi) of this epicenter in the past 10 years. This comes down to an average of once every 5 months.

Tsunami very unlikely

For a serious tsunami to occur, earthquakes usually need to have a magnitude of at least 6.5 and occur at a shallow depth of maximum 100km. Neither are the case with this earthquake. However always stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Sources

Last updated 19/08/23 17:17 (). As more information on this earthquake becomes available this article will be updated. This article is automatically composed based on data originating from multiple sources.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us7000k9zd
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20230620_0000213
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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