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Japan earthquakes in 1940

16 earthquakes of magnitude 4.5 or more were located in Japan in 1940. The largest: M7.5 137 km WSW of Rishiri Town, Japan, Aug 2, 1940.

From the USGS catalog. Times are local to each quake.

19391941

Map

Where every quake of 1940 was located in Japan. Select one for its page.

Open the live map with earthquakes

Every quake of 1940

Magnitude 4.5 and up, newest first.

Month by month

Counted by UTC date, which is how the catalog files them.

MonthQuakesLargestWhere
January 194036.7285 km ESE of Naze, Japan
February 194016.186 km NE of Miyako, Japan
March 194026.1Bonin Islands, Japan region
April 19400
May 19400
June 194026.2near the east coast of Honshu, Japan
July 194016.0136 km SE of Katsuura, Japan
August 194037.5137 km WSW of Rishiri Town, Japan
September 19400
October 19400
November 194036.651 km SE of Kamaishi, Japan
December 194015.573 km E of Ishinomaki, Japan

What this means

The catalog is only as complete as the instruments of the time. Worldwide coverage of magnitude 5 and up dates from the 1960s, and of 4.5 from the 1990s; earlier years hold the large quakes and the ones near a station, so a low count in an early year means fewer instruments, not a quiet earth.

By year

Every year the USGS catalog covers.

Nearby

Japan nowWorldwide in 1940

Sources

Earthquakes, magnitudes, depths, shaking estimates and felt reports from the U.S. Geological Survey Earthquake Hazards Program, read from its live feeds and its catalog back to 1900. Tsunami messages from NOAA’s tsunami warning centers.