M4.3 earthquake 73 km SE of ?funato, Japan
A magnitude 4.3 earthquake struck 73 km SE of ?funato, Japan on Sat, Dec 9, 1978, 2:30 PM JST (05:30 UTC), 57 km (35 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M4.4 78 km SE of ?funato, Japan. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.3 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-12-09 05:30:46 UTC
- Depth
- 57.0 km (35.4 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 38.662° N, 142.384° E
- Region
- Japan
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Stations used
- 10
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 2 in the 60 days after this one and 4 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.397 km ESE of Ishinomaki, Japan · 17435 days ago · 47 km deep · 51 km away
- 4.478 km SE of ?funato, Japan · 17424 days ago · 38 km deep · 5 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayJapan earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000xug. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 5:20 AM UTC.