Japan at the boundary of the tectonic plates

Japan is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire, i.e. in a tectonically particularly active region on the edge of the Pacific Earth Plate. Not only do an excessive number of volcanoes form here, but earthquakes also occur excessively often due to subterranean faults. In addition, Japan is also located in the border region of several other plates. Most of Japan lies on the Philippine Plate, the north partly on the Eurasian Plate, whose borders run along the northwest coast to the south. North of Japan are the extensions of the North American Plate.
Few earthquakes occur directly on Japanese ground. Most earthquakes are caused by faults of the Pacific Plate, i.e. in the Pacific Ocean but close to the east coast. Here, subduction (the dipping of one plate beneath another) creates the deepest places in the world. Off Japan, the speed of this plate movement is extremely high at around 10 cm per year.

Japan is therefore often and regularly hit by earthquakes, some of which are very strong. Normally, even the more severe earthquakes are "only" in the range of 5 to 6 on the Richter scale. However, much stronger faults with magnitudes of over 8 also occur at intervals of several years. By far the strongest and most consequential quake with a magnitude of 9.1 was the Honshu quake in 2011.

However, the stronger earthquakes are still clearly felt on land and also cause great damage as their magnitude increases. However, faults at sea often also lead to tsunamis, which travel long distances and then cause dangerous waves on land. This was also the case with the strongest quake to date in 2011. Although it was the strongest quake in decades, the damage from the resulting tsunami was far more significant.

Because of the known danger, there are strict building regulations for the construction of houses, roads and almost all other infrastructure. Earthquake drills for the population also take place regularly.