A powerful earthquake has struck northeastern Japan

[Sylvia]

A 7.3-magnitude earthquake has struck northeastern Japan. The Meteorological Agency has issued a tsunami advisory for coastal areas of Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures.

The quake measured 6-plus on the Japanese seismic scale of zero to 7 in parts of Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures.

The agency says tsunami waves are believed to have already reached these areas. Waves up to one meter high are projected.

Residents are being advised to stay away from beaches and to avoid river mouths.

ETA link to an update ~6 hours later with video:

Tsunami advisory lifted for northeastern Japan | NHK WORLD-JAPAN News

Japan's meteorological agency has lifted a tsunami advisory it issued for the northeastern parts of the country following an earthquake off the Pacific coast.

www3.nhk.or.jp

The magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck at around 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday [March 16].
It had a maximum intensity of 6-plus on Japan's seismic scale of zero to 7. The depth of the focus was estimated at 57 kilometers. Tremors were felt across much of eastern Japan.

 

[Sylvia]

Good news is that street lights are on in a live shot of Sendai right now, although the “Tokyo Electric Power Company says more than 2.09 million households in nine prefectures in its service area are being left without electricity.”

 

[allezfred]

That’s a fairly large earthquake. Fingers crossed it doesn’t cause too much damage.

 

[twilla]

I just saw this report on CNN - very upsetting. I hope everyone is safe and there no additional issues with the nuclear power plant that was struck back in 2011.

 

[AxelAnnie]

That’s a fairly large Earthquake

Man! that is HUGE.

Earthquakes are measured by lots of things....amplitude, depth, etc. So a 2 is not twice as bad as a 1.

And then there are the aftershocks. The most terrifying thing is that there is no warning. I was in college (1994) during the big Northridge Quake. 6.7 The quake woke us up. I fully expected to look outside and see San Francisco out my window...Teutonic
shift. East Bay had a double-decker freeway.....turned into a one-decker as the top crashed into the bottom.

My roommates and I would have earthquake drills (for the aftershocks) We each had a doorway to stand in (doorways are structurally sound. And an aftershock would come and all four of us just ran around the living room screaming!

Is g-d mad at us or something? The hits just keep coming. Sending the victims hope and love.

Here is what the measurements look like.

1994 Northridge earthquake - Wikipedia​

https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › 1994_Northridge_eart...





The 1994 Northridge earthquake was a moment magnitude 6.7 (Mw), blind thrust earthquake that occurred on January 17, 1994, at 4:30:55 a.m. PST in the San ...
Local date: January 17, 1994

1994 Northridge earthquake - Wikipedia​

https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › 1994_Northridge_eart...





The 1994 Northridge earthquake was a moment magnitude 6.7 (Mw), blind thrust earthquake that occurred on January 17, 1994, at 4:30:55 a.m. PST in the San ...
Local date: January 17, 1994
Max. intensity: IX (Violent)‎
Areas affected: Greater Los Angeles Area; ‎Sou...‎
Casualties: 57 killed; > 8,700 injured
‎Blind thrust earthquake · ‎Iris Adrian · ‎Interstate 5 in California
Areas affected: Greater Los Angeles Area; ‎Sou...‎
Casualties: 57 killed; > 8,700 injured
‎Blind thrust earthquake · ‎Iris Adrian · ‎Interstate 5 in California

 

[Sylvia]

The March 11, 2011 Tōhoku earthquake (before the devastating tsunami) measured 9.0–9.1 in magnitude…

From NHK…

East Japan Railway says a Tohoku Shinkansen bullet train derailed between Fukushima and Shiroishizao stations.
No injuries have been reported so far.
The company received a report that part of a train car is leaning off the track.

 

[barbk]

Man! that is HUGE.

Earthquakes are measured by lots of things....amplitude, depth, etc. So a 2 is not twice as bad as a 1.

And then there are the aftershocks. The most terrifying thing is that there is no warning. I was in college (1994) during the big Northridge Quake. 6.7 The quake woke us up. I fully expected to look outside and see San Francisco out my window...Teutonic
shift. East Bay had a double-decker freeway.....turned into a one-decker as the top crashed into the bottom.

My roommates and I would have earthquake drills (for the aftershocks) We each had a doorway to stand in (doorways are structurally sound. And an aftershock would come and all four of us just ran around the living room screaming!

Is g-d mad at us or something? The hits just keep coming. Sending the victims hope and love.

Here is what the measurements look like.

1994 Northridge earthquake - Wikipedia​

https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › 1994_Northridge_eart...

The 1994 Northridge earthquake was a moment magnitude 6.7 (Mw), blind thrust earthquake that occurred on January 17, 1994, at 4:30:55 a.m. PST in the San ...
Local date: January 17, 1994

1994 Northridge earthquake - Wikipedia​

https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › 1994_Northridge_eart...

Just so nobody gets confused - the Northridge earthquake was in the greater Los Angeles area and not near San Francisco. The Loma Prieta (aka SF/Oakland) earthquake was in 1989, which caused pancaking of the (SF-Oakland) Bay Bridge. Both caused tremendous damage and loss of life. And, in both cases, lands that were reclaimed/filled land (Marina District in SF and Santa Monica) suffered significant damage even though some intervening areas had much less damage.

 

[DreamSkates]

I hope everyone there is safe. My son did study abroad in Sendai and often felt smaller earthquakes but thankfully no big one.

 

[AxelAnnie]

Northridge is not built on a landfill. It is located in the middle of the San Fernando Valley. So I am not sure what you mean. The earthquake was caused by a shift of the teutonic plates that make up the earth's crust. The quake was so strong, I was afraid the plates had shifted so much SF would be outside my window.

Parts of the freeways in and out of Los Angeles may have been built on landfill.

And, I just read that the Northridge quake epicenter was Reseda.....another San Fernando Valley city. (Do not plan a trip down there. What used to be lovely groves of Citrus trees, Movie Studios, is now a mass of not very special anything.)

There are a few places in CA where you can see where the shift occurred. Bodega Bay (yes, The Birds) has some interesting topographical sights.

 

[barbk]

Northridge is not built on a landfill. It is located in the middle of the San Fernando Valley. So I am not sure what you mean. The earthquake was caused by a shift of the teutonic plates that make up the earth's crust. The quake was so strong, I was afraid the plates had shifted so much SF would be outside my window.

Parts of the freeways in and out of Los Angeles may have been built on landfill.

And, I just read that the Northridge quake epicenter was Reseda.....another San Fernando Valley city. (Do not plan a trip down there. What used to be lovely groves of Citrus trees, Movie Studios, is now a mass of not very special anything.)

There are a few places in CA where you can see where the shift occurred. Bodega Bay (yes, The Birds) has some interesting topographical sights.

The parts of Santa Monica built on reclaimed land suffered severe damage and building collapses. Santa Monica is about 17 miles from Reseda. Similarly, the Marina district of San Francisco is about 50 miles from Loma Prieta earthquake center, and it too suffered severe damage with many pancaked buildings. Filled land is like jello during earthquakes. I visited both areas shortly after the earthquakes, and it was fascinating to see how much the damage varied by area rather than distance from the quake.

 

[AxelAnnie]

Yep - we just love to shake it up out here in California

 

[Sylvia]

M7.4 quake in northeast Japan likely caused by 2021 temblor: experts

The magnitude-7.4 earthquake which struck northeastern Japan on March 16 is likely to have been caused by the temblor at the same location in February 2021, experts say, warning that strong seismic activity should continue in the area.

english.kyodonews.net

The magnitude-7.4 earthquake which struck northeastern Japan on Wednesday is likely to have been caused by the temblor at the same location in February 2021, experts say, warning that strong seismic activity should continue in the area.
The powerful quake off the Fukushima coast is considered to be an aftershock of the M9.0 quake in 2011 which devastated the same northeastern region and triggered the nuclear disaster, but its focus was much deeper at 57 kilometers below the seabed than 24 km 11 years ago.

Experts suspect that the quake late Wednesday, which left three people dead and over 180 injured, was directly triggered by the M7.3 temblor occurring at almost the same location at a depth of 55 km on Feb. 13, 2021.
Both quakes registered an upper 6 on Japan's seismic intensity scale of 7 in parts of Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures.
The relationship of the two quakes one year apart is "like a twin," says Takashi Furumura, professor of seismology at the University of Tokyo.
"There is a possibility that part of the fault at that location did not rupture when last year's quake occurred but it did this time with a one-year delay," Furumura said. […]
The quake in February 2021 left over 150 people injured.