Seismic Event Dossier03:31 Local (17:31 UTC)(just now)
39.21°N, 144.59°E
USGS•#official19330302173100_30reviewed

Earthquake near North Pacific Ocean (Japan)

A magnitude 8.4 (MW) earthquake occurred on 1933-03-02, 03:31 local time (17:31 UTC) (just now), centered North Pacific Ocean (298 km SE, Japan). The hypocenter was located at a shallow depth of 15 km. Primary telemetry verified by USGS alongside 1 regional seismic monitoring networks.

Historical Landmark Earthquake

#22 of All Time

Curated Global Seismic Archive (1700–Present)

Top-100 Earthquakes
Magnitude 8.4 historical earthquake occurring on 1933-03-02 in Japan. Associated with the Unnamed Fault (Active Fault). Documented casualties: > 1,000.
Documented Fatalities> 1,000
Fault KinematicsActive Fault
Equivalent Energy60.04 Mt TNT

Magnitude

MW
M 8.4

60.04 Mt TNT

Depth

15 km
15 km

shallow (Shallow crustal)

PAGER Impact

red
> 1,000 fatalities

Injuries: > 5,000 · ~72.3M felt

Interactive Epicenter & Fault Map

Fault5 km
Unnamed Fault
Active Fault · ~~15.0 mm/yr
Felt byMMI V+
~72.3M exposed
~7.2M in strong shaking
Primary SolutionUSGS
USGS#official19330302173100_30reviewed
1 agencies reporting
Geological Setting39.2°N
Japan
Offshore / Marine rupture

Seismic Activity & Aftershock Sequence

Timeline of foreshocks, main rupture, aftershocks and machine learning risk probability evolution.

M0.0M4.5M9.0100%50%0%MainshockMar 2, 04 AMMar 2, 04 PMMar 3, 04 AMMar 3, 04 PMMar 4, 04 AMMar 4, 04 PMMar 5, 04 AMMar 5, 04 PMMar 6, 04 AMMar 6, 04 PMM8.4
Hover or tap a point to inspect aftershocks and risk probability curve.
<35 km (Shallow)35–70 km (Intermediate)>70 km (Deep)Mainshock
ML Risk Forecast:12h38%24h52%72h67%7d83%

Where it was felt

1 settlements

Shaking intensity is modelled from magnitude, depth and distance (GMPE attenuation), not reported by residents.

TownDistanceIntensity
Hachinohe · Aomori298 kmMMI VII

Readings by agency

1 sources

Independent solutions for the same rupture. Differences of 0.1–0.3 in magnitude are normal and reflect method and station coverage.

AgencySource IDMagnitudeDepthEpicenter
USGS
Primary
official19330302173100_30M 8.415 km39.21, 144.59

Tectonic setting

Nearest mapped active fault: Unnamed Fault, 5 km away, slip rate ~15.0 mm/yr (GEM Global Active Faults).