On Thursday Night a Shallow M5.6 Earthquake struck in the North Pacific Ocean 260km from Sendai (Japan).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on August 26th, 2026. Last updated September 7th, 2026.

A shallow and significant M5.6 earthquake struck in the North Pacific Ocean 260 kilometer from Sendai, Japan in the night of Thursday August 27th, 2026. Roughly 170 thousand people may have felt this earthquake.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the North Pacific Ocean, 241 kilometers (150 mi) off the coast of Japan, 260 kilometer east of Sendai in Miyagi. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 16 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Aug 27, 2026 04:21 (Tokyo Time) - Aug 26, 2026 19:21 Universal Time.
Location:	260 km east of Sendai, Miyagi, Japan. Coordinates 38°10'56"N 143°50'41"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.6 Detected by 51 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.043 .
Depth:	16 km (10 mi) A very shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	IV Light 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 170 thousand people exposed to shaking

This earthquake may have been felt by around 170 thousand people. That is the expected population size of the area exposed to a level of shaking of II or higher on the Modified Mercalli scale according to the USGS.

The highest earthquake impact level for this earthquake is III, which corresponds with weak shaking and probably no damage. Roughly 68,190 people are expected to be exposed to this level. The majority of people (roughly 100 thousand) 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 . Kamaishi in Iwate, Japan is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 210 kilometer (130 mi) south-east of Kamaishi. Kamaishi experienced an earthquake intensity (MMI Scale) of roughly II. That level implies very weak shaking and no damage.

Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. Sendai is located 260 km to the west (intensity unknown, possibly low). Iwaki is located 290 km to the southwest (intensity unknown, possibly low). Morioka is located 288 km to the northwest (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 maximum intensity (MMI Scale) caused by this earthquake is III. The map below shows in which areas this earthquake was the most and least impactful. It is based on data from the US Geographic Survey.

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 1 person

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 1 person has reported shaking in one place in 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: 1 person.

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.

The risk of aftershocks decreases rapidly over time. Usually, aftershocks are at least one order of magnitude lower than a main shock.

It's always adviced to be cautious of the risk of a larger shock following any significant earthquake, however this risk is fairly small. There is a roughly 94 percent change that no larger main shock will follow in the days following this 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 July 1st, 2026, when a 6 magnitude earthquake hit 256 km (159 mi) further northwest. An even stronger magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck on April 20th, 2026.

In total, 41 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.6 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 3 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 07/09/26 20:18 (). 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 us7000tc18
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20260826_0000267
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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