8.0 Earthquake in Japan

EDIS | 9/25/03 | EDIS

[BlownChevelle]

I just got an EDIS alert that there was an 8.0 quake near Hokkaido, Japan. Tsunami warnings for AK. No news sources yet that I can find...

[Pagey]

8.0 on the Islands OR in the water is an absolutely huge earthquake.Just Imagining that happening here in L.A., the latest/newest crop of illegals would go out of their freaking minds.

[Chemist_Geek]

I hope this doesn't become a Kodiak moment.

Groaaaaan!

[Dog]

Any reports of damage??

[Nexus]

This is big. Check out Guam's seismo:

[tubebender]

Try this one... Quake

[rintense]

Absolutely correct. Plate movements happen in twos. A moderate quake will rock California, Mexico, or Alaska within the next few days.

[headsonpikes]

One never knows about tsunamis. We've got a few hours to wait.

8.1...Jeez, that's big.

[Ichneumon]

8.0 Earthquake in Japan

Okay, this is eerie: Astronomer Predicts Major Earthquake for Japan, Other Experts Express Doubts (posted 9/15/03):

Yoshio Kushida, a well-known self-taught astronomer who runs his own observatory just outside Tokyo, published on its Internet site his prediction that a quake with a magnitude of 7 or greater was likely to strike the metropolitan area on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Off by 8 days and 260 miles, but still...

[lainie]

My husband spent time on Amchitka a decade ago. What is it, 1200 miles west of Anchorage? Alaska is so massive!

[Conservative4Ever]

Picnic basket stealing bears sincerely hope you are wrong. :)

Red

[UCANSEE2]

It's my observation that whenever an earthquake occurs the other side of the world has one too. Usually within three days.

I have noticed that too. We will see.

Bye-bye Jellystone Park!

It has been brewing for months, so again, we will see. I would hate for you to be right.

(and the world changed in an instant)

[Chemist_Geek]

my UTC clock has it at 20:30 right now....

That's not too far off... This post should show up at around 2045 UTC.

UTC time checks are available from radio WWV and WWVH at 2.5, 5, 10, 15, and 20 MHz; radio CHU at 3.330, 7.335, and 14.670 MHz; and NIST telephone at 303-499-7111.

[ZGuy]

Japanese TV seems to be going with regular programming from the few stations I checked who are broadcasting online.

[tubebender]

OOps...quake

[MineralMan]

"My husband spent time on Amchitka a decade ago. What is it, 1200 miles west of Anchorage? Alaska is so massive!"

And Shemya is way farther out. It's a tiny little island, and boasts the fastest winds ever recorded. It's a hellish assignment. I lucked out and my posting there was changed at the last minute to Turkey. Earthquakes there too, though.

[AmericanInTokyo]

Cmon, that quack was debunked both here AND all over Japan. Please don't cloud the thread with some crackpot's prediction that was both vague in location and is now off by over nine days. Thanks.

[SauronOfMordor]

Reuters finally notices:

Strong Quake Hits Japan North Island of Hokkaido
Thu September 25, 2003 04:37 PM ET
TOKYO (Reuters) - A strong earthquake struck the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido on Friday and Japanese authorities issued a tsunami tidal wave warning on television.

The quake measured up to six on the Japanese scale of one to seven. Under the Japanese seismic classification, an intensity-6 earthquake is strong enough to damage houses, trigger landslides and crack up roads.

NHK television showed video of a fire at an oil refinery after the quake.

The meteorological agency issued a tsunami warning for the coastal areas in eastern and central Hokkaido and a tsunami alert for the coastal areas in western Hokkaido as well as the northern Japanese prefectures of Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima.

Hokkaido, about the size of Austria, is the second largest of Japan's four main islands and is home to a nuclear reactor and active volcanoes.

The island, which has a population of more than five million, was hit by the tail end of a typhoon last month. The capital, Sapporo, hosted the Winter Olympics in 1972.

[dfwgator]

Alaska is so massive!

"Alaska is but tiny star compared to vast constellation that is Mother Russia. Ha ha ha ha!" (God I miss SCTV!)

[Steve_Seattle]

"Cmon, that quack was debunked both here AND all over Japan. Please don't cloud the thread with some crackpot's prediction that was both vague in location and is now off by over nine days. Thanks."

I'm in no position to judge, but professional seismologists predict earthquakes within ranges of years, not days, weeks, or months, so in my unprofessional opinion a prediction that is nine days off is pretty good.

[billdcon]

I just did a quick GIS data input, and this earthquake's epicenter (by my calcs.) was about 19.6 miles from the shoreline of Hokkaido Island. It was a fairly deep earthquake, but I can't imagine this earthquake not causing a lot of (non-tsunami) structural damage on the mainland. Wow. Prayers for all touched by this.

Also, correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't a deep and strong quake (as opposed to a strong shallow quake)increase the potential for a large tsunami?