An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.7 occurred in Aichi Prefecture, Japan early this morning. Because the epicenter was located in the predicted source area of a huge earthquake in the Nankai Trough, it attracted attention from the outside world. The Japan Meteorological Agency stated that judging from the scale and occurrence mechanism of this earthquake, it is estimated that it will not have a significant impact on the plate boundary of the Nankai Trough, but we should pay attention to the possibility of another earthquake with a magnitude of 5 in the next week.
NHK reported that according to observations from the Japan Meteorological Agency, the earthquake occurred at about 1:4 a.m. today. The epicenter was located in western Shizuoka Prefecture, with a magnitude of 5.7 and a focal depth of 41 kilometers.
Among them, Chita City in Aichi Prefecture observed earthquakes with a maximum intensity of 5; Toyota City, Kariya City, Tokai City, Hamamatsu City in Shizuoka Prefecture, Ena City in Gifu Prefecture, and Maikimura in Nagano Prefecture also experienced earthquakes with a minimum intensity of 5. The earthquake affected a wide area, with shaking felt from Kanto to Chugoku and Shikoku regions, but fortunately there was no concern of causing a tsunami.
After the main shock, aftershocks continued to occur in the area; after 2 a.m., another earthquake with a magnitude of 3.3 occurred in the eastern part of Aichi Prefecture, with a maximum intensity of 2. The Meteorological Agency reminded that areas affected by strong shaking may still experience earthquakes with a magnitude of 5 in the next week or so. The risk of rockfalls and landslides in mountainous areas may also increase, and the public should pay special attention.
This earthquake has also caused the outside world to worry about whether it is related to the huge earthquake in the Nankai Trough that may occur in the future.
In this regard, the Meteorological Agency explained that although this earthquake occurred within the predicted source area of a huge earthquake in the Nankai Trough, the focal depth and occurrence mechanism were different. In addition, the earthquake was not large in scale, and it was determined that it would not have a special impact on the state of the plate boundary.
Junichi Nakajima, a professor of seismology at Tokyo University of Science, pointed out that this earthquake occurred within the subducting Philippine Sea Plate, which may produce relatively strong short-period vibrations, leading to disasters such as broken glass and toppling of objects. In the future, we must still pay attention to strong shaking of the same degree.
He believes that judging from the location and scale of the earthquake source, this earthquake is unlikely to trigger a huge earthquake in the Nankai Trough, but we should still pay attention to the recurrence of an earthquake of the same size in the next week.
It is worth noting that the last time a magnitude 5 earthquake was observed in Aichi Prefecture was in March 1997, when a magnitude 5.9 earthquake occurred in the eastern part of Aichi Prefecture and Toyohashi City observed a magnitude 5 earthquake. This is the first time since statistics began in 1919 that an earthquake with the western part of Shizuoka Prefecture as the epicenter and a maximum magnitude of 5 has occurred. (Editor: Yang Shengru)
