Major Earthquake in Japan. Originally reported at 7.9, then upgraded to 8.8. Tsunami alert has been issued for area.

Earthquake Details

* This is a computer-generated message -- this event has not yet been reviewed by a seismologist.

Magnitude 8.8
Date-Time

* Friday, March 11, 2011 at 05:46:23 UTC
* Friday, March 11, 2011 at 02:46:23 PM at epicenter
* Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location 38.322°N, 142.369°E
Depth 24.4 km (15.2 miles) set by location program
Region NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN
Distances 130 km (80 miles) E of Sendai, Honshu, Japan
178 km (110 miles) E of Yamagata, Honshu, Japan
178 km (110 miles) ENE of Fukushima, Honshu, Japan
373 km (231 miles) NE of TOKYO, Japan
Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 13.5 km (8.4 miles); depth fixed by location program
Parameters NST=350, Nph=351, Dmin=416.3 km, Rmss=1.46 sec, Gp= 29°,
M-type="moment" magnitude from initial P wave (tsuboi method) (Mi/Mwp), Version=A
Source

* USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)

Event ID usc0001xgp

No Tsunami alert in Malaysia yet, but we've been advised to stay away from Coastal areas here in Borneo

http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/3/11/nation/20110311170110&sec=nation

God help everyone in that area and around the Pacific who may be affected by a tsunami.

Incomprehensible destructive force. The video and photos coming out of there -- especially the tsunami -- are stunning. Tokyo is severely affected as well. I've been on the 23rd floor of a hotel there when a minor tremor occurred and the sway was visible. Cannot imagine being in that city for this. Thoughts and prayers for everyone in that region.

U.S. west coasters be on the lookout, Oregon is anticipating tsunami waves as high as 6 feet. 300 years ago, Japan experienced waves from the estimated 9.0 quake that hit off the Pacific Northwest, that's how the date of that quake was pinpointed despite the sparse population at that time.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110311/ap_on_re_as/as_japan_earthquake

"...the magnitude 8.9 offshore quake was followed by at least 19 aftershocks, most of them of more than magnitude 6.0."

"...Even for a country used to earthquakes, this one was of horrific proportions. It unleashed a 23-foot (7-meter) tsunami that swept boats, cars, buildings and tons of debris miles inland."


http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424..._LEFTTopStories

The quake, one of the five biggest in history with a magnitude of 8.9, caused mass panic around Tokyo, where workers evacuated their buildings and power was cut off at 4.1 million households in Tokyo and neighboring prefectures.

...Twitter proved to be one of the best ways to contact loved ones and get updates on the quake.

Unable to use cellphones, many used their smartphones to tune into television broadcasts and find out what had happened.

Unbelievable destruction. And more trouble. From msnbc.

I have friends in Northern Japan....my friend's son lives there. Also know people in Bali.. Worried.

By the way, you can skip the CNN online coverage - they are running COMMERCIALS on the video clips.
I'm finding vastly better coverage on Al-Jazeera. Twitter - at a macro level - is giving a great "tone of the situation" model.

If this isn't the ultimate SHTF scenario, I don't know what is.

apparently therr was a quake in china yesterdsy to, on the border with myanmar.

I know people in Tokyo so I'm a bit worried, too. It's still 5am here, so I just got up and heard the news. The news coverage is annoying me--everything is about Hawaii or here on the West Coast so far, and I'm interested in Japan news!

I woke up right when the first reports came through the 24 news feeds in the US. Watched for a few hours. I was in a 8.1 on Guam which has made me sensitive to the earthquake situations. Our building was split but there was no tsunami. Over the course of the next few months, the aftershocks, usually 4-6.0 moved the entire island a foot.

I certainly hope that 1st responders are able to help those that need it and can get infrastructure secured and power up quickly.

Checking in from Los Angeles.

First, my deepest condolences and prayers to the people of Japan who lost friends and relatives. That is very sad.

Out here in Los Angeles things are calm. None of the locals who live here are taking the tsunami risk seriously. Just another day in California. My guess is that maybe we might see a 2-foot wave. It could be actually visible this morning, but only because the sea is very calm and flat on Friday morning.

Our local media are doing their normal fear mongering. "Hidden danger in the water!!!". This actually works against them, and they cannot comprehend why nobody is listening to them. The California surfers have blown off the media entirely. Those guys are out on their surfboards in the ocean. A few foreign tourists are a bit freaked out, but the locals here are just heading off to work. The beaches are closed as a precaution, but I expect no damage of any kind from the wave.

UPDATE: Just after 8 am here. Some beaches are closed (e.g. beaches in Orange County), but other beaches are open (L.A. County beaches remain open). Good call by the L.A. County lifeguards! Based on the little helpful info that we are receiving - which came from a radio broadcast by the way, and not the local TV media - the wave should have arrived at this time. Not much activity to report. Barely visible on the beachcams, if at all - but there may be a slight time delay on the tsunami. Meanwhile, we've got local TV reporters standing on hills with TV cameras telling the public to bail out and head for high ground. Give me a break. One day this "dumbed down" journalism is going to cost some lives, because when we do have a critical emergency nobody will take these guys seriously.

other Pete