Latest news with #TokaraIslands
NHK
16 hours ago
- Science
- NHK
Kagoshima shaking: the science behind the quake swarm
Nearly 500 tremors have rattled a remote island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan since Saturday. Japan's Meteorological Agency says more strong shaking could follow ― and is telling residents to stay prepared. Here's what we know about what's causing the shaking and whether there might be worse to come. Japan's Meteorological Agency says seismic activity has ramped up around Kodakarajima Island in the Tokara Islands chain since Saturday morning. Noticeable tremors have continued in Toshima Village, which includes Kodakarajima and nearby islands. By 11 a.m. Thursday, officials had recorded 475 earthquakes registering 1 or higher on Japan's 7-level seismic scale. The agency notes that while the area has seen seismic activity in the past, this number of quakes in four days is the highest on record. Daily counts suggest the number of tremors peaked on Monday at 183, but there were still dozens of quakes on Thursday. Seafloor collisions fuel quake clusters The Tokara Islands sit along the Ryukyu Trench, where the Philippine Sea plate is being pushed beneath the Eurasian plate. Beneath the sea, the area is marked by seamounts ― underwater mountains ― and larger ridges known as sea platforms. As the Philippine plate subducts ― at a rate of about 6 centimeters per year ― these formations press into the land plate, building up strain. Associate Professor Yokose Hisayoshi of Kumamoto University Graduate School says this unique seafloor topography makes the region prone to earthquakes. Essentially, the ridges or mounts on the subducted plate lock the upper plate in place, preventing movement. "Earthquakes occurr when the strain that's built up becomes too much for the landward plate, causing it to rupture and shift sideways," says Yokose. "In the case of the Tokara Islands, the bumpy seafloor is constantly colliding with the land plate, causing frequent quake clusters." Stronger tremor possible Associate Professor Yokose Hisayoshi of Kumamoto University Graduate School is an expert in oceanography. Associate Professor Yokose has been analyzing seismic patterns in the area since quality data became available in the 2000s. He has identified two key phases of activity. The first lasts about five days, with a rapid increase in quake frequency. That's often followed by a second phase lasting about two weeks, when the number of tremors drops but the risk of a larger, more powerful earthquake rises. In fact, four years ago, a magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck on day six of such a sequence, reaching an intensity of 5+ on Japan's seismic scale. Yokose says the current situation appears to be the first phase. And though it may not follow the same pattern as before, there is a chance of an earthquake up to magnitude 6. He says residents should be on high alert for the next week or so. No connection to Nankai Trough Yokose stressed that this swarm of small quakes is not a precursor to a major event, like a Nankai Trough mega-quake. He says the tectonic mechanisms of the Kagoshima islands' tremors are entirely different from those that would trigger a massive quake off Japan's Pacific coast.
Khaleej Times
21 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
Hundreds of earthquakes rattle Japanese island chain
A remote island chain in southern Japan has been rattled by more than 470 earthquakes since Saturday, the national weather agency said on Thursday, calling for residents to stay alert. No major damage has been reported from the series of quakes with a strength of at least one -- slightly perceptible to people seated quietly indoors -- on Japan's seven-point seismic intensity scale. As of Thursday morning, 474 such earthquakes had been observed around the Tokara island chain, south of Kyushu, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said. "Seismic activity has increased. As this region has experienced extended periods of earthquake activity in the past, please be vigilant against earthquakes that cause strong shaking," it said in a statement. The largest tremors recorded since Saturday were two magnitude-5.1 quakes, one on Sunday and one on Tuesday. They had a seismic intensity of four on the Japanese scale -- described as an earthquake in which "most people are startled", dishes rattle and "hanging objects such as lamps swing significantly". A similar period of seismic activity in the Tokara area was seen in September 2023, when 346 earthquakes were recorded within 15 days, according to public broadcaster NHK. Seven of the 12 remote Tokara Islands are inhabited, with around 700 residents in total. The islands, some of which have active volcanoes, are reached by a ferry that runs twice weekly in good weather. "An earthquake of up to magnitude-6 strength could take place, so please be vigilant," Hisayoshi Yokose, a marine volcanology specialist and associate professor at Kumamoto University, told NHK. Japan is one of the world's most seismically active countries, sitting on top of four major tectonic plates along the western edge of the Pacific "Ring of Fire". The archipelago, home to around 125 million people, experiences around 1,500 jolts every year and accounts for around 18 percent of the world's earthquakes. The vast majority are mild, although the damage they cause varies according to their location and the depth below the Earth's surface at which they strike. On New Year's Day 2024, more than 400 people died after a massive earthquake hit the Noto Peninsula in central Japan, including "quake-linked" deaths as well as those killed directly in the disaster. The January 1 quake and its aftershocks toppled buildings, caused fires and knocked out infrastructure at a time when families were celebrating the new year.
Malay Mail
a day ago
- Malay Mail
Hundreds of earthquakes shake Japan's remote Tokara Islands, agency warns of stronger tremors ahead
TOKYO, June 26 — A remote island chain in southern Japan has been rattled by more than 470 earthquakes since Saturday, the national weather agency said on Thursday, calling for residents to stay alert. No major damage has been reported from the series of quakes with a strength of at least one — slightly perceptible to people seated quietly indoors — on Japan's seven-point seismic intensity scale. As of Thursday morning, 474 such earthquakes had been observed around the Tokara island chain, south of Kyushu, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said. 'Seismic activity has increased. As this region has experienced extended periods of earthquake activity in the past, please be vigilant against earthquakes that cause strong shaking,' it said in a statement. The largest tremors recorded since Saturday were two magnitude-5.1 quakes, one on Sunday and one on Tuesday. They had a seismic intensity of four on the Japanese scale — described as an earthquake in which 'most people are startled', dishes rattle and 'hanging objects such as lamps swing significantly'. A similar period of seismic activity in the Tokara area was seen in September 2023, when 346 earthquakes were recorded within 15 days, according to public broadcaster NHK. Seven of the 12 remote Tokara Islands are inhabited, with around 700 residents in total. The islands, some of which have active volcanoes, are reached by a ferry that runs twice weekly in good weather. 'An earthquake of up to magnitude-6 strength could take place, so please be vigilant,' Hisayoshi Yokose, a marine volcanology specialist and associate professor at Kumamoto University, told NHK. Japan is one of the world's most seismically active countries, sitting on top of four major tectonic plates along the western edge of the Pacific 'Ring of Fire'. The archipelago, home to around 125 million people, experiences around 1,500 jolts every year and accounts for around 18 percent of the world's earthquakes. The vast majority are mild, although the damage they cause varies according to their location and the depth below the Earth's surface at which they strike. On New Year's Day 2024, more than 400 people died after a massive earthquake hit the Noto Peninsula in central Japan, including 'quake-linked' deaths as well as those killed directly in the disaster. The January 1 quake and its aftershocks toppled buildings, caused fires and knocked out infrastructure at a time when families were celebrating the new year. — AFP
Al Arabiya
a day ago
- Al Arabiya
Hundreds of earthquake rattle Japanese island chain
A remote island chain in southern Japan has been rattled by more than 470 earthquakes since Saturday, the national weather agency said on Thursday, calling for residents to stay alert. No major damage has been reported from the series of quakes with a strength of at least one -- slightly perceptible to people seated quietly indoors -- on Japan's seven-point seismic intensity scale. As of Thursday morning, 474 such earthquakes had been observed around the Tokara island chain, south of Kyushu, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said. 'Seismic activity has increased. As this region has experienced extended periods of earthquake activity in the past, please be vigilant against earthquakes that cause strong shaking,' it said in a statement. The largest tremors recorded since Saturday were two magnitude-5.1 quakes, one on Sunday and one on Tuesday. They had a seismic intensity of four on the Japanese scale -- described as an earthquake in which 'most people are startled', dishes rattle and 'hanging objects such as lamps swing significantly.' A similar period of seismic activity in the Tokara area was seen in September 2023, when 346 earthquakes were recorded within 15 days, according to public broadcaster NHK. Seven of the 12 remote Tokara Islands are inhabited, with around 700 residents in total. The islands, some of which have active volcanoes, are reached by a ferry that runs twice weekly in good weather. 'An earthquake of up to magnitude-6 strength could take place, so please be vigilant,' Hisayoshi Yokose, a marine volcanology specialist and associate professor at Kumamoto University, told NHK. Japan is one of the world's most seismically active countries, sitting on top of four major tectonic plates along the western edge of the Pacific 'Ring of Fire.' The archipelago, home to around 125 million people, experiences around 1,500 jolts every year and accounts for around 18 percent of the world's earthquakes. The vast majority are mild, although the damage they cause varies according to their location and the depth below the Earth's surface at which they strike. On New Year's Day 2024, more than 400 people died after a massive earthquake hit the Noto Peninsula in central Japan, including 'quake-linked' deaths as well as those killed directly in the disaster. The January 1 quake and its aftershocks toppled buildings, caused fires and knocked out infrastructure at a time when families were celebrating the new year.
South China Morning Post
a day ago
- South China Morning Post
Quake swarm and volcano eruption in Japan reignite fears linked to viral manga prediction
A swarm of earthquakes around Japan 's remote Tokara Islands and the eruption of a long-dormant volcano in Kyushu have renewed public anxiety – stoked in part by a manga artist whose work is widely believed to have foretold a 2011 disaster and who has now predicted another major calamity striking Japan in early July. Seismologists, however, have dismissed any suggestion of a link between the recent activity and the prediction, stressing that there is no scientific basis for forecasting the timing, location or magnitude of earthquakes. More than 330 tremors have rattled the Tokara chain in the past five days, according to local reports, including a magnitude-5 quake shortly after 4am on Tuesday. The remote islands lie between the southern tip of Kyushu and the Okinawa islands, in a seismically active stretch of southwestern Japan. The seismic unrest has coincided with a string of smaller quakes felt in southern Kyushu and the Japan Meteorological Agency's decision to raise the alert level on Mount Shinmoe – a volcano in central Kyushu – to level three on its five-tier scale. Shinmoe erupted on Sunday after seven years of dormancy, sending a 500-metre plume of ash into the air. Ashfall has been reported in surrounding areas, while officials have warned that pyroclastic flows and flying rocks could reach up to 2km from the crater. While seismologists have not linked the events, the timing has unsettled some members of the public, given that the uptick in activity has coincided with a widely circulated prediction by manga author Ryo Tatsuki.
