Shallow M5.1 Earthquake hit in the North Pacific Ocean 167km from Chiba (Japan) on Sunday Afternoon.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on December 21st, 2025. Last updated January 7th, 2026.

A shallow and significant MAG-5.1 earthquake struck in the North Pacific Ocean 167 kilometer from Chiba, Japan in the afternoon of Sunday December 21st, 2025.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the North Pacific Ocean, 137 kilometers (85 mi) off the coast of Japan, 167 kilometer east-southeast of Chiba. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 10 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Dec 21, 2025 15:58 (Tokyo Time) - Dec 21, 2025 06:58 Universal Time.
Location:	167 km ESE of Chiba, Japan. Coordinates 34°47'39"N 141°40'12"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.1 Detected by 213 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.039 .
Depth:	10 km (6 mi) A very shallow depth.
Tsunami Risk:	Low tsunami risk Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 do not usually cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Japan . Ōhara in Chiba, Japan is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 127 kilometer (79 mi) east-southeast of Ōhara.

Multiple major population centers exist within 300km of the earthquake that struck today. Tokyo is located 205 km to the west-northwest. Yokohama is located 197 km to the west-northwest. Kawasaki is located 195 km to the west-northwest.

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

Overview of nearby places

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 October 4th, 2025, when a 5.9 magnitude earthquake hit 292 km (182 mi) further north. An even stronger magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck on November 21st, 2016.

In total, 113 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.1 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 month.

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 07/01/26 08:58 (). 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 us6000rwaw
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20251221_0000107
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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