AsianScientist (Jun. 2, 2015) – A powerful earthquake struck off the coast of Japan on 30 May 2015 at around 2030 hrs (local time). The magnitude-7.8 earthquake’s epicenter was 543 miles (874 kilometers) south of Tokyo at a depth of 421 miles (677 km), according to the US Geological Survey. Fortunately, the earthquake did not cause any major damage.
The earthquake was felt across the country, with buildings swaying and train services being halted, reported The BBC. Though the earthquake’s epicenter was situated in the ocean just off the coast of Japan, there was no tsunami warning issued. There was also no major destruction being reported other than reports of people being injured.
This could be attributed to the depth at which the earthquake occurred—at 421 miles, the ocean and the earth absorbed much of the energy generated by the earthquake. Had the earthquake occurred at a shallower depth, it could have caused catastrophic destruction to Japan’s southern cities, including the capital Tokyo.
The relatively little disruption caused by the latest earthquake is a relief for Japanese citizens, who are still rattled from the effects of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake, which left approximately 20,000 people dead in its wake. In contrast to the recent earthquake, the Tohoku earthquake occurred at a much shallower depth of 18.6 miles (30 km), thus causing the deadly tsunami and sending its full force throughout Japan.
The Tohoku earthquake, which released nearly all of the stress that had built up along the plate boundary in that region, was so powerful that its soundwaves could be detected from space. It had a magnitude of 9.0 and the resulting tsunami devastated the Sendai coast and caused the Fukushima nuclear disaster, in which a nuclear meltdown of the power plant’s nuclear reactors occurred.
Fortunately this time, Japan was spared from destruction, saved by the depth of the sea.
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Copyright: Asian Scientist Magazine; Photo: US Geological Survey.
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