M4.9 earthquake 13 km S of Shikotan, Russia
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck 13 km S of Shikotan, Russia on Sat, Sep 5, 1981, 5:00 PM JST (08:00 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.7 48 km SSW of Shikotan, Russia. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.9 (mb, body-wave), light
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 1981-09-05 08:00:35 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 43.680° N, 146.736° E
- Region
- Russia
- 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
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.9 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.748 km SSW of Shikotan, Russia · 16461 days ago · 46 km deep · 38 km away
- 5.17 km NW of Shikotan, Russia · 16436 days ago · 75 km deep · 19 km away
- 4.992 km ESE of Shikotan, Russia · 16431 days ago · 33 km deep · 87 km away
- 4.528 km ESE of Nemuro, Japan · 16428 days ago · 33 km deep · 83 km away
- 5.064 km E of Shikotan, Russia · 16417 days ago · 43 km deep · 65 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayRussia earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0001fpp. Read Sat, Oct 3, 2026, 12:25 PM UTC.