M4.0 earthquake 82 km ESE of Hitachi, Japan
A magnitude 4.0 earthquake struck 82 km ESE of Hitachi, Japan on Sat, May 20, 1978, 7:03 PM JST (10:03 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.0 32 km ESE of Hitachi, Japan. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.0 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-05-20 10:03:02 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 36.328° N, 141.502° 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.
- Depth from
- OPERATOR_ASSIGNED
- Stations used
- 8
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 3 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.032 km ESE of Hitachi, Japan · 17649 days ago · 50 km deep · 50 km away
- 4.114 km ENE of Kitaibaraki, Japan · 17639 days ago · 89 km deep · 80 km away
- 4.512 km E of Funaishikawa, Japan · 17619 days ago · 64 km deep · 73 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayJapan earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000umt. Read Tue, Sep 29, 2026, 10:23 PM UTC.