Posted on 04/01/2012 5:24:43 AM PDT by TigerLikesRooster
Tokyo quake 'could be stronger than thought'
The Yomiuri Shimbun
Coastal areas in eastern Tokyo and northeastern Kanagawa Prefecture could be shaken to the maximum level of 7 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale if a magnitude-7.3 earthquake strikes under northern Tokyo Bay, according to a science ministry research team.
The number of areas that could register upper 6 was nearly double that of previous estimates, the team added.
The Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry team on Friday released detailed maps showing the expected intensity of shaking such an earthquake would generate in the Tokyo metropolitan area and neighboring prefectures.
The maps showed more intense shaking--and in more areas--than had previously been estimated by the government's Central Disaster Management Council. The central and local governments will likely need to review their disaster prevention measures.
The research team projected 18 possible scenarios involving strong earthquakes centered around Tokyo. Of them, an earthquake with its focus under northern Tokyo Bay is expected to cause the most serious damage to the capital and neighboring areas.
(Excerpt) Read more at yomiuri.co.jp ...
P!
Experts warn worst-case tsunami could top 34 meters
National Apr. 01, 2012 - 05:25PM JST
TOKYO —
A 34-meter tsunami could hit the Japanese coast in the wake of a massive earthquake, an expert panel said after revising its worst case scenario projections following last year’s disaster.
If a 9.0-magnitude quake struck in the Nankai Trough off central to western Japan, huge swathes of the Pacific coastline could be inundated, with 20-meter-plus waves hitting areas from Tokyo down to the southwestern island of Kyushu.
At the town of Kuroshio in southwestern Kochi Prefecture, the tsunami could reach 34.4 meters—the highest level projected under the scenario, the Cabinet Office panel said late Saturday.
And at the now offline Hamaoka nuclear plant in central Shizuoka Prefecture, the tsunami could be as high as 21 meters, breaching the 18-metre breakwater that operators are currently constructing, the panel said.
In its previous projection in 2003 the panel gave a worst case scenario in which no areas would be hit by a tsunami of more than 20 meters......
No kidding.
Japan is a bunch of islands along the worst part of the Ring of Fire. Of course it’s going to be a bumpy ride.
There are several faults that run from Chiyoda-ku into Chiba-ken, yet the amount of orange connecting the two is slight, and almost all on the coast (undoubtedly related to the vast amount of recovered land in the area.)
And, vindicating the long-held assertions of officials in Shinjuku, it does appear that there is quite a bit of yellow running into that area.
I kinda wonder if there would be any positive results if an underwater counter explosion were to occur in front of a tsunami, like a nuclear device? Or to deploy these like a barrier along the worst areas prone to the most damage.
Might work. Didn't they use something like that to get rid of Godzilla?
Better late than never, but wifey mine and I have decided we’re getting out to the Tokyo Metropolitan Area ASAP. Probably closer to Tachikawa or Kawagoe. Since I am a SOHO professional and she works at Yokota, there’s no reason for us to live close to the city center — and plenty not to.
Oh crap, you know what this means, don’t you? Godzilla will be jolted out of hibernation on the ocean floor. Expect him to show up in Tokyo Bay within the next couple of days.
Later. Much later.
In 2005, our daughter and I went to Tokyo to visit some homeschooling friends. They lived in the Uehara area, between the Yoyogi Uehara and Higashe Kitazawa train stations. We had such a good time! We got to go out to Hakone, and on another day, to Enoshima Island, and to see the Great Buddha at Hase. We’d love to go back sometime.
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