The 1946 Aleutian Islands earthquake occurred near the Aleutian Islands, Alaska on April 1, 1946. The shock had a moment magnitude (Mw ) of 8.6, a tsunami magnitude Mt of 9.3, and a surface-wave magnitude (Ms ) of only 7.4, and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VI (Strong). It resulted in 165–173 casualties and over $26 million in damage. The seafloor along the fault was elevated, triggering a Pacific-wide tsunami with multiple destructive waves at heights ranging from 45–138 ft (14–42 m). The tsunami obliterated the Scotch Cap Lighthouse on Unimak Island, Alaska among others, and killed all five lighthouse keepers. Despite the destruction to the Aleutian Island Unimak, the tsunami had almost an imperceptible effect on the Alaskan mainland.
The 1946 Nankai earthquake was a great earthquake in Nankaidō, Japan. It occurred on December 21, 1946, at 04:19 JST. The earthquake measured between 8.1 and 8.4 on the moment magnitude scale, and was felt from Northern Honshū to Kyūshū. It occurred almost two years after the 1944 Tōnankai earthquake, which ruptured the adjacent part of the Nankai megathrust.
The 2000 New Ireland earthquakes occurred off the coast of New Ireland Province, Papua New Guinea on November 16 and 17.
The 1896 Sanriku earthquake was one of the most destructive seismic events in Japanese history. The 8.5 magnitude earthquake occurred at 19:32 on June 15, 1896, approximately 166 kilometres (103 mi) off the coast of Iwate Prefecture, Honshu. It resulted in two tsunami waves which destroyed about 9,000 homes and caused at least 22,000 deaths. The waves reached a then-record height of 38.2 metres (125 ft); this would remain the highest on record until waves from the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake exceeded that height by more than 2 metres.
The 1965 Rat Islands earthquake occurred at 05:01 UTC, on 4 February. It had a magnitude of 8.7 and triggered a tsunami of over 10 m on Shemya Island, but caused very little damage.
The 1978 Miyagi earthquake occurred at 17:14 local time on 12 June. The epicentre was offshore of Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. It had a surface wave magnitude of 7.7, JMA magnitude 7.4, and triggered a small tsunami. The earthquake reached a maximum intensity of Shindo 5 in Sendai and caused 28 deaths and 1,325 injuries.
The 1996 Biak earthquake, or the Irian Jaya earthquake, occurred on 17 February at near Biak Island, Indonesia. The earthquake, which occurred on the New Guinea Trench, had a moment magnitude of 8.2 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). The run-up height of the generated tsunami reached 7.7 m (25 ft). The disaster left at least 108 people dead, 423 injured, and 58 missing. It damaged or destroyed 5,043 houses which subsequently made another 10,000 homeless. At Korim, 187 houses were destroyed. Various countries and organizations provided aid and relief in the aftermath of the earthquake.
The 1956 Nicaragua earthquake occurred on October 24 at 14:42 UTC. The epicenter was located west of Masachapa, Managua Department, Nicaragua. It was an earthquake of magnitude 7.3, or 7.2. Building damage was reported in Managua. A study of W. Montero P. shows that this earthquake might be related to the earthquake of Nicoya Peninsula on October 5, 1950. A tsunami was triggered by the earthquake.
Susan Y. Schwartz is a scientist at the University of California, Santa Cruz known for her research on earthquakes, through field projects conducted in locations in Costa Rica and the San Andreas Fault.
The 1994 offshore Sanriku earthquake occurred on December 28, 1994, at 12:19 UTC. This was a magnitude 7.7 earthquake with epicenter located in the Pacific Ocean at about 180 km east of Hachinohe, Aomori. The intensity reached shindo 6 in Hachinohe, Aomori, about 187.6 km from epicenter. It could be felt in Tokyo, about 632.9 km from epicenter, with shindo 2. The Japanese Meteorological Agency put the magnitude at 7.5. Slip associated with this earthquake continued for more than a year and it has been termed an 'ultra-slow earthquake'.
In seismology, a tsunami earthquake is an earthquake which triggers a tsunami of significantly greater magnitude, as measured by shorter-period seismic waves. The term was introduced by Japanese seismologist Hiroo Kanamori in 1972. Such events are a result of relatively slow rupture velocities. They are particularly dangerous as a large tsunami may arrive at a coastline with little or no warning.
The 1928 Talca earthquake occurred on 1 December at near Curepto, Maule Region, Chile, with an estimated magnitude of 7.6 MW, 8.3 MS and 7.9 ML. In Talca, it lasted 1 minute 45 seconds.
The 1959 Kamchatka earthquake occurred on May 4 at with a moment magnitude of 8.0–8.3, and a surface wave magnitude of 8.25. The epicenter was near the Kamchatka Peninsula, Russian SFSR, USSR. Building damage was reported in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. The maximum intensity was VIII (Damaging) on the Medvedev–Sponheuer–Karnik scale. The intensity in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky was about VIII MSK.
The 1942 Guatemala earthquake occurred at on August 6 and had ratings of 7.7 on the moment magnitude scale and 7.9 on the surface wave magnitude scale. The epicenter was located off the southern coast of Guatemala, and it was one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded there.
The 1982 Ometepec earthquake that struck Mexico's southwestern coast near Ometepec (Guerrero) on 7 June was a doublet earthquake that ruptured in two steps. The first happened at 06:52 UTC, the second five hours later at 10:59 UTC. Estimated magnitudes are 6.9 and 7.0 on the scale, and 5.8 and 6.0 on the scale. The maximum Mercalli intensities were VII and VIII, respectively.
On 9 December 2016 at 4:38 a.m. local time, the Solomon Islands region was rocked by an Mww 7.8 earthquake, centered 30 km off San Cristobal Island, about 61 km southwest of Kirakira, the capital of Makira-Ulawa Province. Initially registering magnitude 8.0, later downgraded to 7.8, the temblor prompted tsunami warnings that kept countries surrounding the Coral, Tasman and Solomon Sea on high alert, but was later cancelled. A large aftershock of magnitude 6.9 occurred shortly afterwards. This earthquake was largely felt, waking many residents who later ran to high ground for fears of a potential tsunami. The earthquake killed a child and affected some 34,000 people in Makira, South Malaita and Guadalcanal Island where many had lost their homes or had no access to basic needs. Earthquakes are common in this region, with little or no fatalities. This earthquake is tied with three other magnitude 7.8 earthquakes for the second largest earthquake of 2016. On 17 December, the Solomon Islands would be rattled again by a 7.9 magnitude earthquake, this time 54 km east of Taron, Papua New Guinea.
The 2018 Fiji earthquakes occurred on August 19, at 00:19:40 UTC and on September 6 15:49 UTC. The epicenters were located close to the Fijian island Lakeba, and around 270 km from the small town of Levuka on Ovalau. The first earthquake registered a magnitude of Mww 8.2, and is the largest earthquake of 2018. It had a focal depth of 600 km, making it the second largest earthquake ever recorded at a depth greater than 300 km; a tie with the 1994 Bolivia earthquake, and behind the 2013 Okhotsk Sea earthquake. The initial earthquake was caused by a normal fault below the South Pacific Ocean. An Mww 7.9 event struck the islands again on September 6 at a depth of 670 km; this earthquake was a mainshock of its own. Both earthquakes may be considered a doublet event.
The 1993 Kushiro–Oki earthquake was one of two large earthquake to strike the Japanese island of Hōkkaido within the same year. The earthquake with a magnitude of 7.6 Mw or 7.8 MJMA struck at 11:06 UTC or 08:06 pm JST on January 15 near the town of Ashoro. Shaking reached a maximum intensity of IX (Violent) on the Mercalli intensity scale, causing considerable damage, and was felt throughout the island, into northern Honshu, Sakhalin, and the Kuril Islands. As a result of the tremors, two people were killed and more than 600 were wounded.
The 1950 Calama earthquake occurred near the Argentina–Chile border with an epicenter near Calama, Chile in the Atacama Desert on December 9. The event had a hypocenter depth of 113.9 km, beneath the Caichinque volcanic complex. It measured magnitude Mw 8.2 on the moment magnitude scale, making it the largest intermediate depth earthquake ever recorded on Chilean soil. One person was killed and an unspecified number of people were injured in Calama.
