M6.0 earthquake near Nemuro, Hokkaido

What happened

A magnitude 6 earthquake struck 17 km N of Shikotan, Russia on 4 Jul 1979, 06:07 UTC at a depth of 78 km.

Earthquakes of this size are classed as Strong. Can cause damage in populated areas up to tens of kilometres away. This was an intermediate-depth earthquake, so shaking is spread over a wider, gentler area.

The nearest town in our records is Nemuro, about 115 km away in Hokkaido, Japan.