Significant magnitude 5.9 earthquake 120 km east of Miyako, Japan

An earthquake of magnitude 5.9 occurred early morning on Sunday, November 9th, 2025, at 6:29 am local time near Miyako, Miyako Shi, Iwate, Japan, as reported by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC).
According to preliminary data, the quake was located at a shallow depth of 20. km. Shallow earthquakes are felt more strongly than deeper ones as they are closer to the surface. The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.
A second report was later issued by the citizen-seismograph network of RaspberryShake, which listed it as a magnitude 5.5 earthquake. Other agencies reporting the same quake include the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) at magnitude 5.5, France's Réseau National de Surveillance Sismique (RéNaSS) at magnitude 5.5, and Japan's National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience (NIED) at magnitude 5.9.
Generally quakes of this magnitude are recorded by more than one agency and the results can vary, with subsequent reports that come in after the first one often showing more accuracy.
Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake was probably felt by many people in the area of the epicenter. It should not have caused significant damage, other than objects falling from shelves, broken windows, etc.
In Miyako (pop. 51,200) located 120 km from the epicenter, the quake should have been felt as light shaking.
Weak shaking might have been felt in Kamaishi (pop. 43,100) located 129 km from the epicenter.
VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant news about the quake become available. If you’re in the area, please send us your experience through our reporting mechanism, either online or via our mobile app. This will help us provide more first-hand updates to anyone around the globe who wants to know more about this quake.


Earthquake data:
Date & time: Nov 9, 2025 06:29 am (GMT +10) local time (8 Nov 2025 20:29 GMT)
Magnitude: 5.9
Depth: 20.00 km
Epicenter latitude / longitude: 39.5°N / 143.37°E (Japan)
Primary data source: EMSC
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