On Wednesday Evening a Strong M6.0 Earthquake struck in the North Pacific Ocean near Hachinohe (Japan).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on July 1st, 2026. Last updated August 18th, 2026.

In the evening of Wednesday July 1st, 2026, a strong M6.0 earthquake hit in the North Pacific Ocean 86 kilometer from Hachinohe, Japan. Around 4 million people have been exposed to shaking.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the North Pacific Ocean, 60 kilometers (37 mi) off the coast of Japan, 86 kilometer east of Hachinohe in Aomori. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 35 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Jul 1, 2026 21:08 (Tokyo Time) - Jul 1, 2026 12:08 Universal Time.
Location:	86 km east of Hachinohe, Aomori, Japan. Coordinates 40°12'31"N 142°26'28"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 6.0 Detected by 29 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.058 .
Depth:	35 km (22 mi) A quite shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	V Moderate 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 90% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 fatalities.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level GREEN (low). They expect an 90% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact.

Roughly 4 million people exposed to shaking

An estimated 4 million have been exposed to shaking (An MMI or Modified Mercalli Intensity level II or higher) as a result of this earthquake according scientific estimates published by the USGS.

The highest earthquake impact level for this earthquake is IV, which corresponds with light shaking and likely no damage. Roughly 1,346,000 people are expected to be exposed to this level. The majority of people (roughly 2.7 million) live in an area exposed to level III, where weak shaking and probably 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 . The closest significant population center near the earthquake is Miyako in Iwate, Japan. Miyako is located 76 kilometer (47 mi) north-east of the epicenter. The intensity of shaking and damage in Miyako is estimated to be around level IV on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (light shaking, likely no damage).

Multiple major population centers exist within 300km of the earthquake that struck today. Sapporo is located 330 km to the north (intensity unknown, possibly low). Sendai is located 255 km to the southwest (intensity unknown, possibly low). Hachinohe is located 86 km to the west and experienced an intensity of IV (light shaking, likely no damage).

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 IV.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

Shaking reported by 9 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 9 people have reported shaking in 6 places, all within Japan.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

• Misawa, Aomori, Japan: 2 people.
• Sendai, Miyagi, Japan: 2 people.
• Aomori, Aomori, Japan: 2 people.
• Hachinohe, Aomori, Japan: 1 person.
• Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan: 1 person.
• Omagari, Akita, Japan: 1 person.

7 Aftershocks detected

This main shock was followed by 7 smaller aftershocks. At a distance of 21 km (13 mi) northwest of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 4 hrs later. It measured a magnitude of 4.7

In the days before this main shock, 5 smaller foreshocks were detected. Nearby this earthquake a foreshock struck 22 hrs earlier. It measured a magnitude of 4.8

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

More earthquakes coming?

Earthquakes can create aftershocks. These are generally at least 1 magnitude lower than any main shock, and as time passes the chance and strength of aftershocks decreases.

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 June 24th, 2026, when a 6.9 magnitude earthquake hit 24 km (15 mi) further west. An even stronger magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck on December 8th, 2025.

In total, 32 earthquakes with a magnitude of 6 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 4 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 18/08/26 18:18 (). This article contains currently available information about the earthquake and is automatically composed. We continue to update this article up to a few days after the earthquake occurred.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000t9ej
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20260701_0000193
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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