December 6, 1978 Earthquake: Kuril Islands, Russia
A magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck Kuril Islands, Russia on December 6, 1978 at 14:02:01 UTC, 91 km below the surface.
Map
Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Date
- December 6, 1978
- Time
- 14:02:01 UTC
- Place
- Kuril Islands, Russia
- Magnitude
- 7.5 (mb)
- Focal depth
- 91 km (57 mi)
- Intensity
- 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 44.592° N, 146.581° E
- Country
- Russia
The toll
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 million)
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
Damage (VIII) in the southern Kuril Islands and minor damage (IV JMA) on Hokkaido, Japan.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- June 17, 1973, Hokkaido Island, Japan
- October 4, 1994, Hokkaido, Kuril Islands, Japan, Russia
- June 30, 1924, Kuril Islands, Russia
- January 29, 1968, Kuril Islands, Russia
- February 23, 1980, Kuril Islands, Russia
- April 5, 1901, Kuril Islands, Russia
- November 18, 1896, Kuril Islands, Russia
- October 9, 1994, Kuril Islands, Russia
- March 24, 1984, Kuril Islands, Russia
- June 24, 1973, Kuril Islands, Russia
- March 23, 1978, Kuril Islands, Russia
- August 11, 1969, Shikotan Island, Kurilskiye, Russia
- October 25, 1881, Hokkaido Island, Japan
- June 26, 1973, Kuril Islands, Russia
- September 27, 1974, Hokkaido, Kuril-Japan, Russia
More
Significant earthquakes of 1978The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1978Recent earthquakes near hereThis day in weather history
Sources
Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 4820.