Japan earthquakes

M5.2 earthquake 168 km ENE of Miyako, Japan

A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 168 km ENE of Miyako, Japan on Sun, Aug 21, 2016, 1:10 AM JST (16:10 UTC), 10 km (6 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.3 145 km E of Miyako, Japan. This one was a foreshock.

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Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

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The earthquake

Magnitude: 5.2 (Mww, W-phase moment), moderate
Magnitude from: USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time: Sun, Aug 21, 2016, 1:10 AM JST
UTC: 2016-08-20 16:10:34 UTC
Depth: 10.0 km (6.2 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 40.421° N, 143.634° E
Region: Japan
Tsunami flag: No
Status: Reviewed by a seismologist

Magnitude estimates

Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.

Mag.	Scale	Computed by	Notes
5.2	Mww, W-phase moment	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Preferred · Reviewed
5.3	Mw, moment	ISC-GEM global catalog	Final · ±0.1

What happened

The USGS’s account of the effects of this earthquake.

Recorded (2 JMA) in Aomori, Iwate and Miyagi.

From the USGS event page for us10006ffj. U.S. Geological Survey text and figures are in the public domain.

Did you feel it?

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

Fault motion and ground failure

How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.

Faulting: Reverse (thrust)
Moment magnitude: 5.2 Mww
Nodal plane 1: Strike 30°, dip 76°, rake 94°
Nodal plane 2: Strike 194°, dip 14°, rake 75°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty: About 6.4 km horizontally, 1.9 km in depth
Depth from: Operator assigned
Station coverage gap: 136°
Stations used: 101

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.2 and up: 3 in the 60 days after this one and 6 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

Earthquakes today Japan earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us10006ffj (also filed as iscgem609469698). Read Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 9:15 PM UTC.