The Japan Meteorological Agency said that an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.8 on the Richter scale struck north and northeast of Japan Saturday, but no tsunami warning has been issued.
Despite its relatively large size, the earthquake did not cause severe earthquakes or a tsunami, as its epicenter was deep, about 490 kilometers underground.
A magnitude 3.0 earthquake struck off Japan’s northern main island of Hokkaido at 12:29 p.m., on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7, in Hakodate, as well as parts of Aomori and Iwate prefectures.
According to Japanese media, the country has been on alert for a possible massive earthquake along the Nankai Trough in the Pacific Ocean since a 7.1-magnitude quake struck southwestern Japan on Thursday. The latest quake off Hokkaido appears to be unrelated to the feared mega-quake, as its epicenter is far from the closely monitored trough.