Shallow M5.4 Earthquake hit in the North Pacific Ocean 151km from Hachinohe (Japan) on Saturday Morning.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on April 6th, 2024. Last updated May 1st, 2024.

In the North Pacific Ocean 151 kilometer from Hachinohe, Japan, a shallow and significant Magnitude 5.4 earthquake occurred in the morning of Saturday April 6th, 2024. Roughly 2.1 million people may have felt this earthquake.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the North Pacific Ocean, 117 kilometers (72 mi) off the coast of Japan, 151 kilometer east-northeast of Hachinohe in Aomori. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 26 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Apr 6, 2024 09:12 (Tokyo Time) - Apr 6, 2024 00:12 Universal Time.
Location:	151 km ENE of Hachinohe, Aomori, Japan. Coordinates 40°52'39"N 143°13'33"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.4 Detected by 19 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.071 .
Depth:	26 km (16 mi) A quite shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	III Weak On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Low tsunami risk Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 do not usually cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Minimal impact predicted

Based on scientific estimates by the US Geographic Survey (USGS), the risk of high fatalities for this earthquake is classified at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 fatalities, and a 96% chance that the number of fatalities falls no higher than 10.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact, and a 96% chance that the economic impact of this earthquake falls no higher than 10 million USD.

Roughly 2.1 million people exposed to shaking

The USGS has published a report estimating the number of people exposed to this earthquake. Acoording to their analysis, roughly 2.1 million have been exposed to shaking at an MMI level of II or higher.

An estimated 739,600 people were exposed to level III. At this level, weak shaking and probably no damage can be expected. The majority of people (roughly 1.4 million) live in an area exposed to level II, where very weak shaking and no damage is expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Japan .

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Japan . Located 151 kilometer (94 mi) east-northeast of the epicenter of this earthquake, Hachinohe (Aomori, Japan) is the nearest significant population center. The intensity of shaking and damage in Hachinohe is estimated to be around level III on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (weak shaking, probably no damage).

Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. Sapporo is located 289 km to the north-northwest (intensity unknown, possibly low). Hachinohe is located 151 km to the west-southwest and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage). Aomori is located 210 km to the west (intensity unknown, possibly low).

An overview of nearby towns and cities is available in the overview below. If places don't have intensity data available, it likely means the experienced impact in those places was fairly small.

Overview of nearby places

Earthquake Intensity Map

The graph below overlays a map of the region around the epicenter with earthquake intensity data provided by the US Geographic Survey. The highest intensity level detected for this earthquake is III.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

Risk of aftershocks?

We have not yet detected any foreshocks or aftershocks (MAG-2.5 or higher) within 100km (62 mi) of this earthquake.

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.

In only six percent of cases, significant earthquakes are followed by a larger main shock, making the current earthquake a foreshock. While the chance of this happening is not so large, it is adviced to maintain cautiousness in the hours and days following a major earthquake.

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 April 1st, 2024, when a 5.9 magnitude earthquake hit 153 km (95 mi) further west-southwest. An even stronger magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck on May 12th, 2015.

In total, 63 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.4 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 2 months.

Low tsunami risk

Based on early data it appears this earthquake was not strong enough (lower than MAG-6.5) to be likely to cause destructive tsunami's. However this earthquake appeared to have hit at a shallow depth under sea, so stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Sources

Last updated 01/05/24 02:28 (). 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 us7000mac0
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20240406_0000001
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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