February 20, 1979 Earthquake: Iwate, Japan
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck Iwate, Japan on February 20, 1979 at 06:32:32 UTC, 10 km below the surface. It caused a tsunami.
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
- February 20, 1979
- Time
- 06:32:32 UTC
- Place
- Iwate, Japan
- Magnitude
- 6.4 (Ms)
- Focal depth
- 10 km (6 mi)
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 40.232° N, 143.703° E
- Country
- Japan
The toll
The record gives no deaths, injuries or damage for this earthquake.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- June 15, 1896, Sanriku, Japan
- December 2, 1611, Sanriku, Japan
- March 2, 1933, Sanriku, Japan
- February 17, 1793, Sanriku,rikuzen,rikuchu, Japan
- December 6, 1616, Sanriku, Japan
- May 16, 1968, Off East Coast of Honshu Island, Japan
- August 23, 1856, Oshima, Japan
- August 9, 1901, Off Northeast Coast Honshu, Japan
- December 28, 1994, Honshu, Japan
- September 25, 2003, Hokkaido, Japan
- July 23, 2008, N, Honshu, Japan
- August 20, 2016, Off East Coast Honshu, Japan
- January 29, 1763, Sanriku,mutsu, Japan
- April 13, 1677, Sanriku, Japan
- October 12, 1935, Sanriku, Japan
More
Significant earthquakes of 1979The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1979Recent 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 6600.