Earthquake of magnitude 6 jolts Japan on New Year's eve

The USGS said that the earthquake hit some 91 km east of Noda and depth of the quake was 19.3 km.

Updated on: Dec 31, 2025, 20:58:43 IST

By HT News Desk

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An earthquake of magnitude 6 jolted Japan's Noda city on the New Year's eve on Wednesday, December 31, according to the United States Geological Survey.

The exact coordinates of where the earthquake hit are 40.112°N, 142.889°E. (Representational Photo)

The USGS said that the earthquake hit some 91 km east of Noda and depth of the quake was 19.3 km.

The exact coordinates of the quake's epicentre are 40.112°N, 142.889°E.

There were no immediate details of any damage or casualties.

Earlier in the day on the New Year's eve, an earthquake of magnitude 3.4 struck Tibet during the afternoon, according to the National Center for Seismology (NCS). The earthquake happened at around 3.26 pm IST at a depth of 10 kilometres, said the NCS.

Also read: In New Year's Eve address, Putin says Russia believes it will win war in Ukraine

The fresh quake in Japan comes just weeks after the country was hit by another major earthquake of magnitude 6.7 on December 12. The quake was centred 130 kilometres, or 81 miles, from the city of Kuji in Iwate prefecture on Honshu, according to the USGS.

After the December 12 quake, Japan Meteorological Agency had issued a tsunami advisory.

Days before that on December 8, the country was hit by yet another quake of magnitude 7.5, which triggered a tsunami of up to 50 centimetres in Pacific coast communities, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA). The tsunami struck the Hokkaido prefecture town of Urakawa and the Aomori prefecture port of Mutsu Ogawara, JMA said, and had reportedly injured several people.

Why is Japan so prone to earthquakes?

Notably, Japan sits on top of four major tectonic plates on the western side of the Pacific "Ring of Fire" and is among the world's most earthquake-prone countries.

The country, which has a population of about 125 million, records around 1,500 tremors each year.

Most of these are mild, though the impact can differ depending on where they occur and how deep they are beneath the Earth's surface.

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HT News Desk
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