In brief
The event, recorded near the north‑east coast of Honshu at a depth of roughly 50 km, was reported with a 5.4 magnitude by Xinhua and Japan Meteorological Agency alerts, while Kyodo News initially cited a 5.5 reading. All sources agreed on the location in Chiba Prefecture, minimal shaking in neighboring regions and the absence of any tsunami warning.
At 15:07 GMT on Thursday, an earthquake struck the north‑east coast of Honshu, Japan, near Chiba Prefecture, at a depth of about 50 km, according to several reports.
Xinhua announced that the German Research Centre for Geosciences detected a 5.4‑magnitude quake with an epicenter at 35.67° N, 140.59° E and a depth of 49.4 km.
Kyodo News described an early‑morning event with a preliminary magnitude of 5.5, measuring a lower‑5 on Japan’s seismic intensity scale and occurring at a depth of roughly 52 km, noting that no tsunami threat was raised.
Later that day, Kyodo News updated its report, stating that the initial magnitude had been corrected to 5.4 and that the depth was about 50 km.
The Japan Meteorological Agency issued an earthquake alert, confirming a preliminary magnitude of 5.4, a depth of 50 km, and a seismic intensity of lower‑5 across Chiba, with no tsunami warning issued.
While all outlets identify the same epicenter and depth range, their differing magnitude assessments—5.4 from Xinhua and the JMA versus an initial 5.5 from Kyodo—reflect the common post‑shock revisions that occur as seismic data are refined.
Shaking was felt throughout Chiba and neighboring prefectures—including Tokyo, Tochigi, Ibaraki, and Saitama—yet no damage reports or casualties have been documented to date.
