The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) mistakenly issued an early warning estimating a 9.9 magnitude earthquake and forecasting strong tremors across a large part of the country. The actual earthquake measured a magnitude of 6.9 near Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula.
The alert was issued around 12:36 p.m. Friday in Japan, Thursday evening in the United States, and canceled at 12:48 p.m., according to NHK. It warns of strong shaking in northern and central Japan, including the Tokyo area.
An early warning display identified the location as the Kuril Islands region and showed an estimated magnitude of 9.9 at a depth of 140 kilometers (87 miles).
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) measured the actual quake at magnitude 6.9, locating its epicenter approximately 76 kilometers (47 miles) northeast of Ozernovskiy, Russia. Its estimated depth was 143.2 kilometers (89 miles).
According to NHK, the earthquake did not cause tremors in Japan and no tsunami warning was issued. The weather agency said it would investigate the error.
A magnitude 9.9 earthquake would be the largest ever recorded, surpassing the magnitude 9.5 quake that struck Chile in 1960, according to the USGS. This would release about 32,000 times more energy than the 6.9 magnitude earthquake that hit Kamchatka.
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