2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Geophysical effects
One early estimate suggested that the Pacific plate may have moved westward by up to 20 metres (66 ft), and another early estimate put the amount of slippage at as much as 40 m (130 ft). On 6 April the Japanese coast guard said that the quake shifted the seabed near the epicenter 24 metres (79 ft) and elevated the seabed off the coast of Miyagi Prefecture by 3 metres (9.8 ft).


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Geophysical effects
A report by the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, published in Science on 2 December 2011, concluded that the seabed in the area between the epicenter and the Japan Trench moved 50 metres (160 ft) east-southeast and rose about 7 metres (23 ft) as a result of the quake. The report also stated that the quake had caused several major landslides on the seabed in the affected area.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Geophysical effects
The Earth's axis shifted by estimates of between 10 cm (4 in) and 25 cm (10 in). This deviation led to a number of small planetary changes, including the length of a day, the tilt of the Earth, and the Chandler wobble. The speed of the Earth's rotation increased, shortening the day by 1.8 microseconds due to the redistribution of Earth's mass. The axial shift was caused by the redistribution of mass on the Earth's surface, which changed the planet's moment of inertia.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Geophysical effects
Because of conservation of angular momentum, such changes of inertia result in small changes to the Earth's rate of rotation. These are expected changes for an earthquake of this magnitude. The earthquake also generated infrasound waves detected by perturbations in the orbit of the GOCE satellite, which thus serendipitously became the first seismograph in orbit.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Geophysical effects
Soil liquefaction was evident in areas of reclaimed land around Tokyo, particularly in Urayasu, Chiba City, Funabashi, Narashino (all in Chiba Prefecture) and in the Koto, Edogawa, Minato, Chūō, and Ōta Wards of Tokyo. Approximately 30 homes or buildings were destroyed and 1,046 other buildings were damaged to varying degrees. Nearby Haneda Airport, built mostly on reclaimed land, was not damaged. Odaiba also experienced liquefaction, but damage was minimal.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Geophysical effects
Shinmoedake, a volcano in Kyushu, erupted three days after the earthquake. The volcano had previously erupted in January 2011; it is not known if the later eruption was linked to the earthquake. In Antarctica, the seismic waves from the earthquake were reported to have caused the Whillans Ice Stream to slip by about 0.5 metres (1 ft 8 in).


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Geophysical effects
The first sign international researchers had that the earthquake caused such a dramatic change in the Earth's rotation came from the United States Geological Survey which monitors Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) stations across the world. The Survey team had several GPS monitors located near the scene of the earthquake. The GPS station located nearest the epicenter moved almost 4 m (13 ft). This motivated government researchers to look into other ways the earthquake may have had large scale effects on the planet. Calculations at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory determined that the Earth's rotation was changed by the earthquake to the point where the days are now 1.8 microseconds shorter.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Aftershocks
Japan experienced over 1,000 aftershocks since the earthquake, with 80 registering over magnitude 6.0 Mw and several of which have been over magnitude 7.0 Mw.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Aftershocks
A magnitude 7.4 Mw at 15:08 (JST), 7.9 Mw at 15:15 and a 7.7 Mw quake at 15:26 all occurred on 11 March.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Aftershocks
A month later, a major aftershock struck offshore on 7 April with a magnitude of 7.1 Mw. Its epicenter was underwater, 66 km (41 mi) off the coast of Sendai. The Japan Meteorological Agency assigned a magnitude of 7.4 MJMA, while the U.S. Geological Survey lowered it to 7.1 Mw. At least four people were killed, and electricity was cut off across much of northern Japan including the loss of external power to Higashidōri Nuclear Power Plant and Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Aftershocks
Four days later on 11 April, another magnitude 7.1 Mw aftershock struck Fukushima, causing additional damage and killing a total of three people.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Aftershocks
On 7 December 2012 a large aftershock of magnitude 7.3 Mw caused a minor tsunami, and again on 26 October 2013 a small tsunami was recorded after a 7.1 Mw aftershock.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Aftershocks
As of 16 March 2012 aftershocks continued, totaling 1887 events over magnitude 4.0; a regularly updated map showing all shocks of magnitude 4.5 and above near or off the east coast of Honshu in the last seven days showed over 20 events.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Aftershocks
As of 11 March 2016 there had been 869 aftershocks of 5.0 Mw or greater, 118 of 6.0 Mw or greater, and 9 over 7.0 Mw as reported by the Japanese Meteorological Agency.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Aftershocks
The number of aftershocks was associated with decreased health across Japan.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Aftershocks
On February 13, 2021, a magnitude 7.1–7.3 earthquake struck off the coast of Sendai. It caused some damage in Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures, 185 people were injured, and another person was killed.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Land subsidence
The Geospatial Information Authority of Japan reported land subsidence based on the height of triangulation stations in the area measured by GPS as compared to their previous values from 14 April 2011.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Land subsidence
Scientists say that the subsidence is permanent. As a result, the communities in question are now more susceptible to flooding during high tides.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Earthquake Warning System
One minute before the earthquake was felt in Tokyo, the Earthquake Early Warning system, which includes more than 1,000 seismometers in Japan, sent out warnings of impending strong shaking to millions. It is believed that the early warning by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) saved many lives. The warning for the general public was delivered about eight seconds after the first P wave was detected, or about 31 seconds after the earthquake occurred.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Earthquake Warning System
However, the estimated intensities were smaller than the actual ones in some places, especially in Kanto, Koshinetsu, and Northern Tōhoku regions where the populace warning did not trigger. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, reasons for the underestimation include a saturated magnitude scale when using maximum amplitude as input, failure to fully take into account the area of the hypocenter, and the initial amplitude of the earthquake being less than that which would be predicted by an empirical relationship.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Earthquake, Earthquake Warning System
There were also cases where large differences between estimated intensities by the Earthquake Early Warning system and the actual intensities occurred in the aftershocks and triggered earthquakes. Such discrepancies in the warning were attributed by the JMA to the system's inability to distinguish between two different earthquakes that happened at around same time, as well as to the reduced number of reporting seismometers due to power outages and connection fails. The system's software was subsequently modified to handle this kind of situation.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami
An upthrust of 6 to 8 metres (20 to 26 ft) along a 180 kilometres (110 mi) wide seabed at 60 kilometres (37 mi) offshore from the east coast of Tōhoku resulted in a major tsunami that brought destruction along the Pacific coastline of Japan's northern islands. Thousands of lives were lost and entire towns were devastated. The tsunami propagated throughout the Pacific Ocean region reaching the entire Pacific coast of North and South America from Alaska to Chile. Warnings were issued and evacuations were carried out in many countries bordering the Pacific.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami
Although the tsunami affected many of these places, the heights of the waves were minor. Chile's Pacific coast, one of the farthest from Japan at about 17,000 kilometres (11,000 mi) away, was struck by waves 2 metres (6.6 ft) high, compared with an estimated wave height of 38.9 metres (128 ft) at Omoe peninsula, Miyako city, Japan.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
The tsunami warning issued by the Japan Meteorological Agency was the most serious on its warning scale; it was rated as a "major tsunami", being at least 3 metres (9.8 ft) high. The actual height prediction varied, the greatest being for Miyagi at 6 metres (20 ft) high. The tsunami inundated a total area of approximately 561 square kilometres (217 sq mi) in Japan.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
The earthquake took place at 14:46 JST (UTC 05:46) around 67 kilometres (42 mi) from the nearest point on Japan's coastline, and initial estimates indicated the tsunami would have taken 10 to 30 minutes to reach the areas first affected, and then areas farther north and south based on the geography of the coastline. At 15:55 JST, a tsunami was observed flooding Sendai Airport, which is located near the coast of Miyagi Prefecture, with waves sweeping away cars and planes and flooding various buildings as they traveled inland.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
The impact of the tsunami in and around Sendai Airport was filmed by an NHK News helicopter, showing a number of vehicles on local roads trying to escape the approaching wave and being engulfed by it. A 4-metre-high (13 ft) tsunami hit Iwate Prefecture. Wakabayashi Ward in Sendai was also particularly hard hit. At least 101 designated tsunami evacuation sites were hit by the wave.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
Like the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, the damage by surging water, though much more localized, was far more deadly and destructive than the actual quake. Entire towns were destroyed in tsunami-hit areas in Japan, including 9,500 missing in Minamisanriku; one thousand bodies had been recovered in the town by 14 March 2011.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
Among the factors in the high death toll was the unexpectedly large water surge. The sea walls in several cities had been built to protect against tsunamis of much lower heights. Also, many people caught in the tsunami thought they were on high enough ground to be safe. According to a special committee on disaster prevention designated by the Japanese government, the tsunami protection policy had been intended to deal with only tsunamis that had been scientifically proved to occur repeatedly. The committee advised that future policy should be to protect against the highest possible tsunami. Because tsunami walls had been overtopped, the committee also suggested, besides building taller tsunami walls, also teaching citizens how to evacuate if a large-scale tsunami should strike.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
Large parts of Kuji and the southern section of Ōfunato including the port area were almost entirely destroyed. Also largely destroyed was Rikuzentakata, where the tsunami was three stories high. Other cities destroyed or heavily damaged by the tsunami include Kamaishi, Miyako, Ōtsuchi, and Yamada (in Iwate Prefecture), Namie, Sōma, and Minamisōma (in Fukushima Prefecture) and Shichigahama, Higashimatsushima, Onagawa, Natori, Ishinomaki, and Kesennuma (in Miyagi Prefecture).


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
The most severe effects of the tsunami were felt along a 670-kilometre-long (420 mi) stretch of coastline from Erimo, Hokkaido, in the north to Ōarai, Ibaraki, in the south, with most of the destruction in that area occurring in the hour following the earthquake. Near Ōarai, people captured images of a huge whirlpool that had been generated by the tsunami. The tsunami washed away the sole bridge to Miyatojima, Miyagi, isolating the island's 900 residents. A 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) high tsunami hit Chiba Prefecture about 2½ hours after the quake, causing heavy damage to cities such as Asahi.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
On 13 March 2011, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) published details of tsunami observations recorded around the coastline of Japan following the earthquake. These observations included tsunami maximum readings of over 3 metres (9.8 ft) at the following locations and times on 11 March 2011, following the earthquake at 14:46 JST:


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
Many areas were also affected by waves of 1 to 3 metres (3 ft 3 in to 9 ft 10 in) in height, and the JMA bulletin also included the caveat that "At some parts of the coasts, tsunamis may be higher than those observed at the observation sites." The timing of the earliest recorded tsunami maximum readings ranged from 15:12 to 15:21, between 26 and 35 minutes after the earthquake had struck. The bulletin also included initial tsunami observation details, as well as more detailed maps for the coastlines affected by the tsunami waves.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
JMA also reported offshore tsunami height recorded by telemetry from moored GPS wave-height meter buoys as follows:


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
On 25 March 2011, Port and Airport Research Institute (PARI) reported tsunami height by visiting the port sites as follows:


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
The tsunami at Ryōri Bay (綾里湾), Ōfunato reached a height of 40.1 metres (132 ft) (run-up elevation). Fishing equipment was scattered on the high cliff above the bay. At Tarō, Iwate, the tsunami reached a height of 37.9 metres (124 ft) up the slope of a mountain some 200 metres (660 ft) away from the coastline. Also, at the slope of a nearby mountain from 400 metres (1,300 ft) away at Aneyoshi fishery port (姉吉漁港) of Omoe peninsula (重茂半島) in Miyako, Iwate, Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology found estimated tsunami run up height of 38.9 metres (128 ft).


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
This height is deemed the record in Japan historically, as of reporting date, that exceeds 38.2 metres (125 ft) from the 1896 Meiji-Sanriku earthquake. It was also estimated that the tsunami reached heights of up to 40.5 metres (133 ft) in Miyako in Tōhoku's Iwate Prefecture. The inundated areas closely matched those of the 869 Sanriku tsunami.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
A Japanese government study found that 58% of people in coastal areas in Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima prefectures heeded tsunami warnings immediately after the quake and headed for higher ground. Of those who attempted to evacuate after hearing the warning, only five percent were caught in the tsunami. Of those who didn't heed the warning, 49% were hit by the water.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
Delayed evacuations in response to the warnings had a number of causes. The tsunami height that had been initially predicted by the tsunami warning system was lower than the actual tsunami height; this error contributed to the delayed escape of some residents. The discrepancy arose as follows: in order to produce a quick prediction of a tsunami's height and thus to provide a timely warning, the initial earthquake and tsunami warning that was issued for the event was based on a calculation that requires only about three minutes.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
This calculation is, in turn, based on the maximum amplitude of the seismic wave. The amplitude of the seismic wave is measured using the JMA magnitude scale, which is similar to Richter magnitude scale. However, these scales "saturate" for earthquakes that are above a certain magnitude (magnitude 8 on the JMA scale); that is, in the case of very large earthquakes, the scales' values change little despite large differences in the earthquakes' energy. This resulted in an underestimation of the tsunami's height in initial reports. Problems in issuing updates also contributed to delays in evacuations.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
The warning system was supposed to be updated about 15 minutes after the earthquake occurred, by which time the calculation for the moment magnitude scale would normally be completed. However, the strong quake had exceeded the measurement limit of all of the teleseismometers within Japan, and thus it was impossible to calculate the moment magnitude based on data from those seismometers.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
Another cause of delayed evacuations was the release of the second update on the tsunami warning long after the earthquake (28 minutes, according to observations); by that time, power failures and similar circumstances reportedly prevented the update from reaching some residents. Also, observed data from tidal meters that were located off the coast were not fully reflected in the second warning. Furthermore, shortly after the earthquake, some wave meters reported a fluctuation of "20 centimetres (7.9 in)", and this value was broadcast throughout the mass media and the warning system, which caused some residents to underestimate the danger of their situation and even delayed or suspended their evacuation.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
In response to the aforementioned shortcomings in the tsunami warning system, JMA began an investigation in 2011 and updated their system in 2013. In the updated system, for a powerful earthquake that is capable of causing the JMA magnitude scale to saturate, no quantitative prediction will be released in the initial warning; instead, there will be words that describe the situation's emergency. There are plans to install new teleseismometers with the ability to measure larger earthquakes, which would allow the calculation of a quake's moment magnitude scale in a timely manner.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Japan
JMA also implemented a simpler empirical method to integrate, into a tsunami warning, data from GPS tidal meters as well as from undersea water pressure meters, and there are plans to install more of these meters and to develop further technology to utilize data observed by them. To prevent under-reporting of tsunami heights, early quantitative observation data that are smaller than the expected amplitude will be overridden and the public will instead be told that the situation is under observation. About 90 seconds after an earthquake, an additional report on the possibility of a tsunami will also be included in observation reports, in order to warn people before the JMA magnitude can be calculated.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Elsewhere across the Pacific
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) in Hawaii issued tsunami watches and announcements for locations in the Pacific. At 07:30 UTC, PTWC issued a widespread tsunami warning covering the entire Pacific Ocean. Russia evacuated 11,000 residents from coastal areas of the Kuril Islands. The United States National Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami warning for the coastal areas in most of California, all of Oregon, and the western part of Alaska, and a tsunami advisory covering the Pacific coastlines of most of Alaska, and all of Washington and British Columbia, Canada.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Elsewhere across the Pacific
In California and Oregon, up to 2.4 m-high (7.9 ft) tsunami waves hit some areas, damaging docks and harbors and causing over US$10 million in damage. In Curry County, Oregon US$7 million in damage occurred including the destruction of 1,100 m (3,600 ft) of docks at the Brookings harbor; the county has received over US$1 million in FEMA emergency grants from the US Federal Government. Surges of up to 1 m (3 ft 3 in) hit Vancouver Island in Canada prompting some evacuations, and causing boats to be banned from the waters surrounding the island for 12 hours following the wave strike, leaving many island residents in the area without means of getting to work.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Elsewhere across the Pacific
In the Philippines, waves up to 0.5 m (1 ft 8 in) high hit the eastern seaboard of the country. Some houses along the coast in Jayapura, Indonesia were destroyed. Authorities in Wewak, East Sepik, Papua New Guinea evacuated 100 patients from the city's Boram Hospital before it was hit by the waves, causing an estimated US$4 million in damage. Hawaii estimated damage to public infrastructure alone at US$3 million, with damage to private properties, including resort hotels such as Four Seasons Resort Hualalai, estimated at tens of millions of dollars.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Elsewhere across the Pacific
It was reported that a 1.5 m-high (4.9 ft) wave completely submerged Midway Atoll's reef inlets and Spit Island, killing more than 110,000 nesting seabirds at the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. Some other South Pacific countries, including Tonga and New Zealand, and US territories American Samoa and Guam, experienced larger-than-normal waves, but did not report any major damage. However, in Guam some roads were closed off and people were evacuated from low-lying areas.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Elsewhere across the Pacific
Along the Pacific Coast of Mexico and South America, tsunami surges were reported, but in most places caused little or no damage. Peru reported a wave of 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) and more than 300 homes damaged. The surge in Chile was large enough to damage more than 200 houses, with waves of up to 3 m (9.8 ft). In the Galápagos Islands, 260 families received assistance following a 3 m (9.8 ft) surge which arrived 20 hours after the earthquake, after the tsunami warning had been lifted. There was a great deal of damage to buildings on the islands and one man was injured but there were no reported fatalities.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Elsewhere across the Pacific
After a 2 m (6 ft 7 in) high surge hit Chile, it was reported that the reflection from those surges traveled back across the Pacific, causing a 30–60 cm (12–24 in) surge in Japan, 47–48 hours after the earthquake, according to observation from multiple tide gauges, including in Onahama, Owase, and Kushimoto.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Elsewhere across the Pacific
The tsunami broke icebergs off the Sulzberger Ice Shelf in Antarctica, 13,000 km (8,100 mi) away. The main iceberg measured 9.5 km × 6.5 km (5.9 mi × 4.0 mi) (approximately the area of Manhattan Island) and about 80 m (260 ft) thick. A total of 125 km2 (48 sq mi; 31,000 acres) of ice broke away.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Tsunami, Elsewhere across the Pacific
As of April 2012, wreckage from the tsunami spread around the world, including a soccer ball which was found in Alaska's Middleton Island and a Japanese motorcycle found in British Columbia, Canada.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Casualties, Japan, Key statistics
The official figures released in 2021 reported 19,747 deaths, 6,242 injured, and 2,556 people missing. The leading causes of death were drowning (90.64% or 14,308 bodies), burning (0.9% or 145 bodies) and others (4.2% or 667 bodies, mostly crushed by heavy objects). Injuries related to nuclear explosure or the discharge of radioactive water in Fukushima are difficult to trace as 60% of the 20,000 workers on-site declined to participate in state-sponsored free health checks.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Casualties, Japan, Key statistics
Elderly aged over 60 account for 65.8% of all deaths, as shown on the table to the right. In particular, in the Okawa Elementary School tragedy, which 84 drowned, it was discovered that in the wake of the tsunami, young housewives who wanted to pick up their children to high ground, found their voices drowned out by retired, elderly, male villagers, who prefer to stay put at the school, which was a sea-level evacuation site meant for earthquakes, not for tsunami. Richard Lloyd Parry concluded the tragedy to be "the ancient dialogue [...] between the entreating voices of women, and the oblivious, overbearing dismissiveness of old men".


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Casualties, Japan, Key statistics
For the purpose of relief fund, an "earthquake-related death" was defined to include "Physical and mental fatigue caused by life in temporary shelter", "Physical and mental fatigue caused by evacuation", "Delayed treatment due to an inoperative hospital", "Physical and mental fatigue caused by stress from the earthquake and tsunami". A few cases of suicide are also included. Most of these deaths occurred during the first six months after the earthquake and the number dropped thereafter, but as time has passed, the number has continued to increase.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Casualties, Japan, Key statistics
Most of these deaths occurred in Fukushima prefecture, where the prefecture government has suggested that they could be due to evacuations caused by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster. These indirect casualties have already resulted in more deaths than the number of people killed directly by earthquake and tsunami within the Fukushima prefecture.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Casualties, Japan, Others
Save the Children reports that as many as 100,000 children were uprooted from their homes, some of whom were separated from their families because the earthquake occurred during the school day. 236 children were orphaned in the prefectures of Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima by the disaster; 1,580 children lost either one or both parents, 846 in Miyagi, 572 in Iwate, and 162 in Fukushima. The quake and tsunami killed 378 elementary, middle-school, and high school students and left 158 others missing. One elementary school in Ishinomaki, Miyagi, Okawa Elementary School, lost 74 of 108 students and 10 of 13 teachers in the tsunami due to poor decision making in evacuation.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Casualties, Japan, Others
The Japanese Foreign Ministry confirmed the deaths of nineteen foreigners. Among them were two English teachers from the United States affiliated with the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program; a Canadian missionary in Shiogama; and citizens of China, North and South Korea, Taiwan, Pakistan and the Philippines.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Casualties, Japan, Others
By 9:30 UTC on 11 March 2011, Google Person Finder, which was previously used in the Haitian, Chilean, and Christchurch, New Zealand earthquakes, was collecting information about survivors and their locations.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Casualties, Japan, Others
Japanese funerals are normally elaborate Buddhist ceremonies that entail cremation. The thousands of bodies, however, exceeded the capacity of available crematoriums and morgues, many of them damaged, and there were shortages of both kerosene—each cremation requires 50 litres—and dry ice for preservation. The single crematorium in Higashimatsushima, for example, could only handle four bodies a day, although hundreds were found there. Governments and the military were forced to bury many bodies in hastily dug mass graves with rudimentary or no rites, although relatives of the deceased were promised that they would be cremated later.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Casualties, Japan, Others
As of 27 May 2011, three Japan Ground Self-Defense Force members had died while conducting relief operations in Tōhoku. As of March 2012, the Japanese government had recognized 1,331 deaths as indirectly related to the earthquake, such as caused by harsh living conditions after the disaster. As of 30 April 2012, 18 people had died and 420 had been injured while participating in disaster recovery or clean-up efforts.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Casualties, Overseas
The tsunami was reported to have caused several deaths outside Japan. One man was killed in Jayapura, Papua, Indonesia after being swept out to sea. A man who is said to have been attempting to photograph the oncoming tsunami at the mouth of the Klamath River, south of Crescent City, California, was swept out to sea. His body was found on 2 April 2011 along Ocean Beach in Fort Stevens State Park, Oregon, 530 km (330 mi) to the north.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects
The degree and extent of damage caused by the earthquake and resulting tsunami were enormous, with most of the damage being caused by the tsunami. Video footage of the towns that were worst affected shows little more than piles of rubble, with almost no parts of any structures left standing. Estimates of the cost of the damage range well into the tens of billions of US dollars; before-and-after satellite photographs of devastated regions show immense damage to many regions. Although Japan has invested the equivalent of billions of dollars on anti-tsunami seawalls which line at least 40% of its 34,751 km (21,593 mi) coastline and stand up to 12 m (39 ft) high, the tsunami simply washed over the top of some seawalls, collapsing some in the process.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects
Japan's National Police Agency said on 3 April 2011, that 45,700 buildings were destroyed and 144,300 were damaged by the quake and tsunami. The damaged buildings included 29,500 structures in Miyagi Prefecture, 12,500 in Iwate Prefecture and 2,400 in Fukushima Prefecture. Three hundred hospitals with 20 beds or more in Tōhoku were damaged by the disaster, with 11 being completely destroyed. The earthquake and tsunami created an estimated 24–25 million tons of rubble and debris in Japan.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects
A report by the National Police Agency of Japan on 10 September 2018 listed 121,778 buildings as "total collapsed", with a further 280,926 buildings "half collapsed", and another 699,180 buildings "partially damaged". The earthquake and tsunami also caused extensive and severe structural damage in north-eastern Japan, including heavy damage to roads and railways as well as fires in many areas, and a dam collapse. Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said, "In the 65 years after the end of World War II, this is the toughest and the most difficult crisis for Japan." Around 4.4 million households in northeastern Japan were left without electricity and 1.5 million without water.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects
An estimated 230,000 automobiles and trucks were damaged or destroyed in the disaster. As of the end of May 2011, residents of Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima prefectures had requested the deregistration of 15,000 vehicles, meaning that the owners of those vehicles were writing them off as unrepairable or unsalvageable.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Weather conditions
Low temperature and snowfall were major concerns after the earthquake. Snow arrived minutes before or after the tsunami, depending on locations. Ishinomaki, the city which suffered the most deaths, was 0°C (32°F) and snowing just after the hit (4pm). Major snow fell again on 16 March, and intermittently in the coming weeks. 18 March was the coldest of that month, recording -4°C to 6°C (25°F to 43°F) in Sendai. Photos of city ruins covered with snow were featured in various photo albums in international media, including NASA.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Ports
All of Japan's ports were briefly shut down after the earthquake, though the ones in Tokyo and southwards soon re-opened. Fifteen ports were located in the disaster zone. The north eastern ports of Hachinohe, Sendai, Ishinomaki and Onahama were destroyed, while the Port of Chiba (which serves the hydrocarbon industry) and Japan's ninth-largest container port at Kashima were also affected, though less severely. The ports at Hitachinaka, Hitachi, Soma, Shiogama, Kesennuma, Ofunato, Kamashi and Miyako were also damaged and closed to ships. All 15 ports reopened to limited ship traffic by 29 March 2011. A total of 319 fishing ports, about 10% of Japan's fishing ports, were damaged in the disaster. Most were restored to operating condition by 18 April 2012.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Ports
The Port of Tokyo suffered slight damage; the effects of the quake included visible smoke rising from a building in the port with parts of the port areas being flooded, including soil liquefaction in Tokyo Disneyland's parking lot.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Dams and water problems
The Fujinuma irrigation dam in Sukagawa ruptured, causing flooding and the washing away of five homes. Eight people were missing and four bodies were discovered by the morning. Reportedly, some locals had attempted to repair leaks in the dam before it completely failed. On 12 March 252 dams were inspected and it was discovered that six embankment dams had shallow cracks on their crests. The reservoir at one concrete gravity dam suffered a small non-serious slope failure. All damaged dams are functioning with no problems. Four dams within the quake area were unreachable. When the roads clear, experts will be dispatched to conduct further investigations.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Dams and water problems
In the immediate aftermath of the calamity, at least 1.5 million households were reported to have lost access to water supplies. By 21 March 2011, this number fell to 1.04 million.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Electricity
According to the Japanese trade ministry, around 4.4 million households served by Tōhoku Electric Power (TEP) in northeastern Japan were left without electricity. Several nuclear and conventional power plants went offline, reducing the Tokyo Electric Power Company's (TEPCO) total capacity by 21 GW. Rolling blackouts began on 14 March due to power shortages caused by the earthquake. TEPCO, which normally provides approximately 40 GW of electricity, announced that it could only provide about 30 GW, because 40% of the electricity used in the greater Tokyo area was supplied by reactors in the Niigata and Fukushima prefectures.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Electricity
The reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi and Fukushima Dai-ni plants were automatically taken offline when the first earthquake occurred and sustained major damage from the earthquake and subsequent tsunami. Rolling blackouts of approximately three hours were experienced throughout April and May while TEPCO scrambled to find a temporary power solution. The blackouts affected Tokyo, Kanagawa, Eastern Shizuoka, Yamanashi, Chiba, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tochigi, and Gunma prefectures. Voluntary reductions in electricity use by consumers in the Kanto area helped reduce the predicted frequency and duration of the blackouts. By 21 March 2011, the number of households in the north without electricity fell to 242,927.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Electricity
Tōhoku Electric Power was not able to provide the Kanto region with additional power because TEP's power plants were also damaged in the earthquake. Kansai Electric Power Company (Kepco) could not share electricity, because its system operated at 60 hertz, whereas TEPCO and TEP operate their systems at 50 hertz; the disparity is due to early industrial and infrastructure development in the 1880s that left Japan without a unified national power grid.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Electricity
Two substations, one in Shizuoka Prefecture and one in Nagano Prefecture, were able to convert between frequencies and transfer electricity from Kansai to Kanto and Tōhoku, but their capacity was limited to 1 GW. With damage to so many power plants, it was feared it might be years before a long-term solution could be found.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Electricity
To help alleviate the shortage, three steel manufacturers in the Kanto region contributed electricity produced by their in-house conventional power stations to TEPCO for distribution to the general public. Sumitomo Metal Industries could produce up to 500 MW, JFE Steel 400 MW, and Nippon Steel 500 MW of electric power. Auto and auto parts makers in Kanto and Tōhoku agreed in May 2011 to operate their factories on Saturdays and Sundays and close on Thursdays and Fridays to help alleviate electricity shortages during the summer of 2011. The public and other companies were also encouraged to conserve electricity in the 2011 summer months (Setsuden).


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Electricity
The expected electricity crisis in 2011 summer was successfully prevented thanks to all the setsuden measures. Peak electricity consumption recorded by TEPCO during the period was 49.22GW, which is 10.77GW (18%) lower than the peak consumption in the previous year. Overall electricity consumption during July and August was also 14% less than in the previous year. The peak electricity consumption within TEP's area was 12.46GW during the 2011 summer, 3.11GW (20%) less than the peak consumption in the previous year, and the overall consumption have been reduced by 11% in July with 17% in August compared to previous year.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Electricity
The Japanese government continued to ask the public to conserve electricity until 2016, when it is predicted that the supply will be sufficient to meet demand, thanks to the deepening of the mindset to conserve electricity among corporate and general public, addition of new electricity providers due to the electricity liberalization policy, increased output from renewable energy as well as fossil fuel power stations, as well as sharing of electricity between different electricity companies.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Oil, gas and coal
A 220,000-barrel (35,000 m3)-per-day oil refinery of Cosmo Oil Company was set on fire by the quake at Ichihara, Chiba Prefecture, to the east of Tokyo. It was extinguished after ten days, injuring six people, and destroying storage tanks. Others halted production due to safety checks and power loss. In Sendai, a 145,000-barrel (23,100 m3)-per-day refinery owned by the largest refiner in Japan, JX Nippon Oil & Energy, was also set ablaze by the quake. Workers were evacuated, but tsunami warnings hindered efforts to extinguish the fire until 14 March, when officials planned to do so.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Oil, gas and coal
An analyst estimates that consumption of various types of oil may increase by as much as 300,000 barrels (48,000 m3) per day (as well as LNG), as back-up power plants burning fossil fuels try to compensate for the loss of 11 GW of Japan's nuclear power capacity.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Oil, gas and coal
The city-owned plant for importing liquefied natural gas in Sendai was severely damaged, and supplies were halted for at least a month.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Oil, gas and coal
In addition to refining and storage, several power plants were damaged. These include Sendai #4, New-Sendai #1 and #2, Haranomachi #1 and #2, Hirono #2 and #4 and Hitachinaka #1.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Nuclear power plants
The Fukushima Daiichi, Fukushima Daini, Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant and Tōkai nuclear power stations, consisting of a total eleven reactors, were automatically shut down following the earthquake. Higashidōri, also on the northeast coast, was already shut down for a periodic inspection. Cooling is needed to remove decay heat after a Generation II reactor has been shut down, and to maintain spent fuel pools. The backup cooling process is powered by emergency diesel generators at the plants and at Rokkasho nuclear reprocessing plant.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Nuclear power plants
At Fukushima Daiichi and Daini, tsunami waves overtopped seawalls and destroyed diesel backup power systems, leading to severe problems at Fukushima Daiichi, including three large explosions and radioactive leakage. Subsequent analysis found that many Japanese nuclear plants, including Fukushima Daiichi, were not adequately protected against tsunamis. Over 200,000 people were evacuated.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Nuclear power plants
The discharge of radioactive water in Fukushima were confirmed in later analysis at the three reactors at Fukushima I (Units 1, 2, and 3), which suffered meltdowns and continued to leak coolant water.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Nuclear power plants
The aftershock on 7 April caused the loss of external power to Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant and Higashidori Nuclear Power Plant but backup generators were functional. Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant lost three of its four external power lines and temporarily lost cooling function in its spent fuel pools for "20 to 80 minutes". A spill of "up to 3.8 litres" of radioactive water also occurred at Onagawa following the aftershock. A report by the IAEA in 2012 found that the Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant had remained largely undamaged.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Nuclear power plants
In 2013, only two nuclear reactors in Japan had been restarted since the 2011 shutdowns. In February 2019, there were 42 operable reactors in Japan. Of these, only nine reactors in five power plants were operating after having been restarted post-2011.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Nuclear power plants, Fukushima meltdowns
Japan declared a state of emergency following the failure of the cooling system at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, resulting in the evacuation of nearby residents. Officials from the Japanese Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency reported that radiation levels inside the plant were up to 1,000 times normal levels, and that radiation levels outside the plant were up to eight times normal levels. Later, a state of emergency was also declared at the Fukushima Daini nuclear power plant about 11 km (6.8 mi) south. Experts described the Fukushima disaster was not as bad as the Chernobyl disaster, but worse than the Three Mile Island accident.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Nuclear power plants, Fukushima meltdowns
The discharge of radioactive water of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant was later detected in tap water. Radioactive iodine was detected in the tap water in Fukushima, Tochigi, Gunma, Tokyo, Chiba, Saitama, and Niigata, and radioactive caesium in the tap water in Fukushima, Tochigi and Gunma. Radioactive caesium, iodine, and strontium were also detected in the soil in some places in Fukushima. There may be a need to replace the contaminated soil. Many radioactive hotspots were found outside the evacuation zone, including Tokyo. Radioactive contamination of food products were detected in several places in Japan. In 2021, the Japanese cabinet finally approved the dumping of radioactive water in Fukushima into the Pacific Ocean over a course of 30 years, with full support of IAEA.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Nuclear power plants, Incidents elsewhere
A fire occurred in the turbine section of the Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant following the earthquake. The blaze was in a building housing the turbine, which is sited separately from the plant's reactor, and was soon extinguished. The plant was shut down as a precaution.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Nuclear power plants, Incidents elsewhere
On 13 March the lowest-level state of emergency was declared regarding the Onagawa plant as radioactivity readings temporarily exceeded allowed levels in the area of the plant. Tōhoku Electric Power Co. stated this may have been due to radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accidents but was not from the Onagawa plant itself.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Nuclear power plants, Incidents elsewhere
As a result of the 7 April aftershock, Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant lost three of four external power lines and lost cooling function for as much as 80 minutes. A spill of a couple of litres of radioactive water occurred at Onagawa.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Nuclear power plants, Incidents elsewhere
The number 2 reactor at Tōkai Nuclear Power Plant was shut down automatically. On 14 March it was reported that a cooling system pump for this reactor had stopped working; however, the Japan Atomic Power Company stated that there was a second operational pump sustaining the cooling systems, but that two of three diesel generators used to power the cooling system were out of order.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Transport
Japan's transport network suffered severe disruptions. Many sections of Tōhoku Expressway serving northern Japan were damaged. The expressway did not reopen to general public use until 24 March 2011. All railway services were suspended in Tokyo, with an estimated 20,000 people stranded at major stations across the city. In the hours after the earthquake, some train services were resumed. Most Tokyo area train lines resumed full service by the next day—12 March. Twenty thousand stranded visitors spent the night of 11–12 March inside Tokyo Disneyland.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Transport
A tsunami flooded Sendai Airport at 15:55 JST, about one hour after the initial quake, causing severe damage. Narita and Haneda Airport both briefly suspended operations after the quake, but suffered little damage and reopened within 24 hours. Eleven airliners bound for Narita were diverted to nearby Yokota Air Base.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Transport
Various train services around Japan were also canceled, with JR East suspending all services for the rest of the day. Four trains on coastal lines were reported as being out of contact with operators; one, a four-car train on the Senseki Line, was found to have derailed, and its occupants were rescued shortly after 8 am the next morning.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Transport
Minami-Kesennuma Station on the Kesennuma Line was obliterated save for its platform; 62 of 70 (31 of 35) JR East train lines suffered damage to some degree; in the worst-hit areas, 23 stations on 7 lines were washed away, with damage or loss of track in 680 locations and the 30-km radius around the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant unable to be assessed.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Transport
There were no derailments of Shinkansen bullet train services in and out of Tokyo, but their services were also suspended. The Tokaido Shinkansen resumed limited service late in the day and was back to its normal schedule by the next day, while the Jōetsu and Nagano Shinkansen resumed services late on 12 March. Services on Yamagata Shinkansen resumed with limited numbers of trains on 31 March.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Transport
Derailments were minimized because of an early warning system that detected the earthquake before it struck. The system automatically stopped all high-speed trains, which minimized the damage.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Transport
The Tōhoku Shinkansen line was worst hit, with JR East estimating that 1,100 sections of the line, varying from collapsed station roofs to bent power pylons, will need repairs. Services on the Tōhoku Shinkansen partially resumed only in Kantō area on 15 March, with one round-trip service per hour between Tokyo and Nasu-Shiobara, and Tōhoku area service partially resumed on 22 March between Morioka and Shin-Aomori. Services on Akita Shinkansen resumed with limited numbers of trains on 18 March. Service between Tokyo and Shin-Aomori was restored by May, but at lower speeds due to ongoing restoration work; the pre-earthquake timetable was not reinstated until late September.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Transport
The rolling blackouts brought on by the crises at the nuclear power plants in Fukushima had a profound effect on the rail networks around Tokyo starting on 14 March. Major railways began running trains at 10–20 minute intervals, rather than the usual 3–5 minute intervals, operating some lines only at rush hour and completely shutting down others; notably, the Tōkaidō Main Line, Yokosuka Line, Sōbu Main Line and Chūō-Sōbu Line were all stopped for the day. This led to near-paralysis within the capital, with long lines at train stations and many people unable to come to work or get home. Railway operators gradually increased capacity over the next few days, until running at approximately 80% capacity by 17 March and relieving the worst of the passenger congestion.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Telecommunications
Cellular and landline phone service suffered major disruptions in the affected area. Immediately after the earthquake cellular communication was jammed across much of Japan due to a surge of network activity. On the day of the quake itself American broadcaster NPR was unable to reach anyone in Sendai with a working phone or access to the Internet. Internet services were largely unaffected in areas where basic infrastructure remained, despite the earthquake having damaged portions of several undersea cable systems landing in the affected regions; these systems were able to reroute around affected segments onto redundant links.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Telecommunications
Within Japan, only a few websites were initially unreachable. Several Wi-Fi hotspot providers reacted to the quake by providing free access to their networks, and some American telecommunications and VoIP companies such as AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, T-Mobile and VoIP companies such as netTALK and Vonage have offered free calls to (and in some cases, from) Japan for a limited time, as did Germany's Deutsche Telekom.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Defense
Matsushima Air Field of the Japan Self-Defense Force in Miyagi Prefecture was struck by the tsunami, flooding the base and resulting in damage to all 18 Mitsubishi F-2 fighter jets of the 21st Fighter Training Squadron. Twelve of the aircraft were scrapped, while the remaining six were slated for repair at a cost of 80 billion yen ($1 billion), exceeding the original cost of the aircraft.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Cultural properties
754 cultural properties were damaged across nineteen prefectures, including five National Treasures (at Zuigan-ji, Ōsaki Hachiman-gū, Shiramizu Amidadō, and Seihaku-ji); 160 Important Cultural Properties (including at Sendai Tōshō-gū, the Kōdōkan, and Entsū-in, with its western decorative motifs); 144 Monuments of Japan (including Matsushima, Takata-matsubara, Yūbikan, and the Site of Tagajō); six Groups of Traditional Buildings; and four Important Tangible Folk Cultural Properties. Stone monuments at the UNESCO World Heritage Site: Shrines and Temples of Nikkō were toppled. In Tokyo, there was damage to Koishikawa Kōrakuen, Rikugien, Hamarikyū Onshi Teien, and the walls of Edo Castle.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Damage and effects, Cultural properties
Information on the condition of collections held by museums, libraries and archives is still incomplete. There was no damage to the Historic Monuments and Sites of Hiraizumi in Iwate Prefecture, and the recommendation for their inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List in June was seized upon as a symbol of international recognition and recovery.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Aftermath
The aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami included both a humanitarian crisis and a major economic impact. The tsunami resulted in over 340,000 displaced people in the Tōhoku region, and shortages of food, water, shelter, medicine, and fuel for survivors. In response the Japanese government mobilized the Self-Defence Forces (under Joint Task Force – Tōhoku, led by Lieutenant General Eiji Kimizuka), while many countries sent search and rescue teams to help search for survivors. Aid organizations both in Japan and worldwide also responded, with the Japanese Red Cross reporting $1 billion in donations.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Aftermath
The economic impact included both immediate problems, with industrial production suspended in many factories, and the longer term issue of the cost of rebuilding which has been estimated at ¥10 trillion ($122 billion). In comparison to the 1995 Great Hanshin earthquake, the East Japan earthquake brought serious damage to an extremely wide range.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Aftermath
The aftermath of the twin disasters also left Japan's coastal cities and towns with nearly 25 million tons of debris. In Ishinomaki alone, there were 17 trash collection sites 180 metres (590 ft) long and at least 4.5 metres (15 ft) high. An official in the city's government trash disposal department estimated that it would take three years to empty these sites.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Aftermath
In April 2015, authorities off the coast of Oregon discovered debris that was thought to be from a boat destroyed during the tsunami. The cargo contained yellowtail jack fish, a species that lives off the coast of Japan, still alive. KGW estimates that more than 1 million tons of debris still remain in the Pacific Ocean.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Aftermath
In February 2016, a memorial was inaugurated by two architects for the victims of the disaster, consisting of  6.5-square-metre structure on a hillside between a temple and a cherry tree in Ishinomaki.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Aftermath
Emergency vehicles staging in the ruins of Otsuchi, Japan following the tsunami


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Scientific and research response
Seismologists anticipated a very large quake would strike in the same place as the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake—in the Sagami Trough, southwest of Tokyo. The Japanese government had tracked plate movements since 1976 in preparation for the so-called Tokai earthquake, predicted to take place in that region. However, occurring as it did 373 km (232 mi) north east of Tokyo, the Tōhoku earthquake came as a surprise to seismologists. While the Japan Trench was known for creating large quakes, it had not been expected to generate quakes above an 8.0 magnitude.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Scientific and research response
The Headquarters For Earthquake Research Promotion set up by Japanese government then reassessed the long term risk of trench-type earthquakes around Japan, and it was announced in November 2011 that research on the 869 Sanriku earthquake indicated that a similar earthquake with a magnitude of Mw 8.4–9.0 would take place off the Pacific coast of northeastern Japan, on average, every 600 years. Also, a tsunami-earthquake with a tsunami magnitude scales (Mt) between 8.6 and 9.0 (Similar to the 1896 Sanriku earthquake, the Mt for the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake was 9.1–9.4) had a 30% chance to occur within 30 years.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Scientific and research response
The quake gave scientists the opportunity to collect a large amount of data to model the seismic events that took place in great detail. These data are expected to be used in a variety of ways, providing unprecedented information about how buildings respond to shaking, and other effects. Gravimetric data from the quake have been used to create a model for increased warning time compared to seismic models, as gravity fields travel faster than seismic waves.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Scientific and research response
Researchers have also analysed the economic effects of this earthquake and have developed models of the nationwide propagation via interfirm supply networks of the shock that originated in the Tōhoku region.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Scientific and research response
Researchers soon after the full extent of the disaster was known launched a project to gather all digital material relating to the disaster into an online searchable archive to form the basis of future research into the events during and after the disaster. The Japan Digital Archive is presented in English and Japanese and is hosted at the Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Some of the first research to come from the archive was a 2014 paper from the Digital Methods Initiative in Amsterdam about patterns of Twitter usage around the time of the disaster.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Scientific and research response
After the 2011 disaster the UNISDR, United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction, held its World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Tohoku in March 2015, which produced the Sendai Framework document to guide efforts by international development agencies to act before disasters instead of reacting to them after the fact. At this time Japan's Disaster Management Office (Naikakufu Bosai Keikaku) published a bi-lingual guide in Japanese and English, Disaster Management in Japan, to outline the several varieties of natural disaster and the preparations being made for the eventuality of each.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Scientific and research response
In the fall of 2016 Japan's National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience (NIED; Japanese abbreviation, Bosai Kaken; full name Bousai Kagaku Gijutsu Kenkyusho) launched the online interactive "Disaster Chronology Map for Japan, 416–2013" (map labels in Japanese) to display in visual form the location, disaster time, and date across the islands.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Scientific and research response
An expedition named Japan Trench Fast Drilling Project have been conducted in year 2012–2013 to drill oceanfloor boreholes through the fault-zone of the earthquake and gathered important data about the rupture mechanism and physical properties of the fault that caused the huge earthquake and tsunami which devastated much of northeast Japan.


2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Scientific and research response, Ecological Research
The 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami had a great environmental impact on Japan's eastern coast. The rarity and magnitude of the earthquake-tsunami prompted researchers Jotaro Urabe, Takao Suzuki, Tatsuki Nishita, and Wataru Makino to study their immediate ecological impacts on intertidal flat communities at Sendai Bay and the Sanriku Ria coast. Pre- and post-event surveys show a reduction in animal taxon richness and change in taxon composition mainly attributed to the tsunami and its physical impacts. In particular, sessile epibenthic animals and endobenthic animals both decreased in taxon richness. Mobile epibenthic animals, such as hermit crabs, were not as affected. Post-surveys also recorded taxa that were not previously recorded before, suggesting that tsunamis have the potential to introduce species and change taxon composition and local community structure. The long term ecological impacts at Sendai Bay and the greater east coast of Japan require further study.


2011 U-20 Copa Libertadores
The 2011 U-20 Copa Libertadores (known as the 2011 Copa Movistar Libertadores Sub-20 for sponsorship reasons) was the first edition of this U-20 club competition. Players born on or after 1 January 1990 were eligible to compete. The tournament was originally going to be hosted in November 2010, however, because of the postponement, players born in 1990 were allowed to play, otherwise only players born after 1 January 1991 would have been eligible.


2011 U-20 Copa Libertadores, Venues
All games were played in Lima at the Estadio Monumental and Estadio Alejandro Villanueva.


2011 U-20 Copa Libertadores, Qualification
In addition to the two clubs of the host nation, nine clubs qualified from the remaining nine football associations of CONMEBOL and one from the Mexican Football Federation.


2011 U-20 Copa Libertadores, Group stage
The winners and runners-up from each group, as well as the best two third-placed teams, advanced the quarterfinals.


2011 U-League
2011 U-League is fourth season for university football teams in South Korea. The participated team is expanded to 70 teams of university football teams in South Korea. League was divided 7 division league, 10 teams in each division league. The top four teams from each division and four teams of fifth & sixth teams from each division (total 32 teams) progress to the U-League Championship and other 38 teams compete U-League Friendship.


2011 U-League
League start on April 1 and will end October 18. Championship and Friendship will be held from end of October to middle of November.


2011 U-League, League, League table
Advances to Championship  Advances to Playoff for Championship  Advances to Friendship


2011 U-League, League, Playoff for Championship
The winners of the second round go through to the 2011 U-League Championship, and others are go through to the 2011 U-League Friendship.


2011 U-League, League, Playoff for Championship
First round was held on 18 October 2011, and second round was held on 20 October 2011. The draw for the playoff was held on 4 October 2011.


2011 U-League, Tournament, Friendship
Friendship is football tournament for lower team of U-League. The draw for the friendship was held on 4 October 2011. Hoseo University did not take part.


2011 U-League, Tournament, Championship
The draw for the championship was held on 4 October 2011.


2011 U.S. F2000 National Championship
The 2011 U.S. F2000 National Championship is a season of the U.S. F2000 National Championship, an open wheel auto racing series that is the first step in IndyCar's Road to Indy ladder. It is the second full season of the series since its revival in 2010. It follows the first 2011 U.S. F2000 Winterfest winter championship. It consists of 12 races held over 7 race weekends on seven different tracks – two street circuits, two ovals, and three permanent road courses.


2011 U.S. F2000 National Championship
Finnish driver Petri Suvanto, in his first season racing in North America, won the championship with five wins and five second-place finishes by 47 points over American Spencer Pigot, the 2010 Skip Barber National Championship winner. British driver Wayne Boyd won two races and finished third while Zach Veach won the season opener but struggled during the second half of the season to wind up fourth in points. Sixteen-year-old New Yorker Luca Forgeois won the National Class over his only full-time National Class rival J. R. Smart.


2011 U.S. F2000 Winterfest
The 2011 U.S. F2000 Cooper Tires Winterfest was the first winter racing series promoted by the U.S. F2000 National Championship. It consisted of five races held during two race meets in January 2011. It served as preparation for the 2011 U.S. F2000 National Championship and was contested using 2010 rules.


2011 U.S. F2000 Winterfest
The championship saw only a handful of entries. Zach Veach won the championship over Andretti Autosport teammate Spencer Pigot by six points as they each won two races. Vinícius Perdigão won the first race but faded to fourth in the championship. J. R. Smart was the only National Class entrant and won that championship by default.


2011 U.S. Figure Skating Championships
The 2011 U.S. Figure Skating Championships was held in Greensboro, North Carolina on January 22–30, 2011. Skaters competed in the men's singles, ladies' singles, pair skating, and ice dancing on the senior, junior, and novice levels. The event was part of the selection process for several international events, including the 2011 World Championships.


2011 U.S. Figure Skating Championships
The event resulted in direct economic impacts of $27.4 million and an additional $24 million in media impacts, with tax revenues of over $2.2 million.


2011 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships
The 2011 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the 43rd edition of the U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships, and was an ATP World Tour 250 event. It took place at River Oaks Country Club in Houston, Texas, United States, from April 4 through April 10, 2011. Unseeded Ryan Sweeting, who entered the main draw on a wildcard, won the singles title.


2011 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships, Finals, Doubles
Bob Bryan /  Mike Bryan defeated  John Isner /  Sam Querrey, 6–7(4-7), 6–2, [10–5]


2011 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships – Doubles
Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan successfully defended their 2010 title, defeating John Isner and Sam Querrey in the final.


2011 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships – Singles
Juan Ignacio Chela was the defending champion, but could not defend his title since he withdrew from the tournament for personal reasons. Ryan Sweeting claimed the title, defeating Kei Nishikori 6–4, 7–6(7–3) in the final match.


2011 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships – Singles, Seeds
The top four seeds received a bye into the second round.


2011 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships – Singles Qualifying
This article displays the qualifying draw of the 2011 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships.


2011 U.S. National Gymnastics Championships
The 2011 Visa U.S. National Gymnastics Championships was the 48th edition of the U.S. National Gymnastics Championships. The competition was held from August 17–20, 2011 at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota.


2011 U.S. National Gymnastics Championships, Event information
The forty-eighth edition of the Championships, the competition was held at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota, a multi-purpose arena. The competition was televised by NBC Sports Network.


2011 U.S. National Gymnastics Championships, Event information, Competition schedule
The competition featured Senior and Junior competitions for both women's and men's disciplines. The competition was as follows;


2011 U.S. National Gymnastics Championships, Event information, Competition schedule
Thursday, August 171 p.m. - Junior Men Competition - Day 16:30 p.m. - Senior Men's Competition - Day 1


2011 U.S. National Gymnastics Championships, Event information, Competition schedule
Friday, August 181 p.m. - Junior Women's Competition - Day 16:30 p.m. - Senior Women's Competition - Day 1


2011 U.S. National Gymnastics Championships, Event information, Competition schedule
Saturday, August 1911:30 a.m. - Senior Men's Competition - Final Day6 p.m. - Junior Men's Competition - Final Day


2011 U.S. National Gymnastics Championships, Event information, Competition schedule
Sunday, August 2010 a.m. - Junior Women's Competition - Final Day2:30 p.m. - Senior Women's Competition - Final Day


2011 U.S. National Gymnastics Championships, Event information, Sponsorship
Visa was the title sponsor of the event as they had been since 2004.


2011 U.S. National Gymnastics Championships, National Team
The following seniors were named to the National Team – Rebecca Bross, Bridgette Caquatto, Mackenzie Caquatto, Gabby Douglas, Shawn Johnson, McKayla Maroney, Chellsie Memmel, Aly Raisman, Alicia Sacramone, Sabrina Vega, Jordyn Wieber. The following juniors were named to the National Team – Kennedy Baker, Brianna Brown, Madison Desch, Brenna Dowell, Sarah Finnegan, Amelia Hundley, Bailie Key, Katelyn Ohashi, Elizabeth Price, Lexie Priessman, Kyla Ross, MyKayla Skinner, Kiana Winston.


2011 U.S. Open (golf)
The 2011 United States Open Championship was the 111th U.S. Open, played June 16–19 at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland, a suburb northwest of Washington, D.C. Rory McIlroy  won his first major title, eight strokes ahead of Jason Day. He set eleven  U.S. Open records on the weekend, including the lowest total 72-hole score (268) and the lowest total under par (−16). McIlroy and Robert Garrigus became the fifth and sixth in U.S. Open history to score under par in all four rounds.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Venue
The 2011 U.S. Open was the third at Congressional Country Club. In 1997, Ernie Els of South Africa won his second U.S. Open at four under par, one stroke clear of Colin Montgomerie. The first U.S. Open at Congressional was in 1964; Ken Venturi defeated Tommy Jacobs by four shots in extreme heat and humidity. The 1964 Open was the last scheduled for three days, with 36 holes on Saturday. The  course also hosted the PGA Championship in 1976.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Field
About half the field each year consists of players who are fully exempt from qualifying for the U.S. Open. The players who qualified for the 2011 U.S. Open are listed below. Each player is classified according to the first category in which he qualified, but other categories are shown in parentheses.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Field
Two tweaks were made to the qualification categories for 2011. The number of players automatically exempted from the previous U.S. Open was reduced from the top 15 scorers plus ties to the top 10 plus ties. A new category was added, exempting the top 50 players on the Official World Golf Ranking list as of June 13, the last ranking issued before play starts (this is in addition to the top 50 on the same list as of May 22).


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Field
This was the final year that the money lists on the various tours were used for exemption categories, as well as the multiple PGA Tour winner category (categories 9 and 11 to 16). In future years, the top 60 players in the Official World Golf Ranking, as of both three weeks prior to the tournament and immediately before play starts, received invitations.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Field
Ángel Cabrera (3), Michael Campbell, Jim Furyk (9,10,17,18), Lucas Glover, Retief Goosen (9,10,17,18), Graeme McDowell (8,11,17,18), Geoff Ogilvy (9,10,16,17,18)


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Field
Trevor Immelman, Zach Johnson (9,10,17,18), Phil Mickelson (8,9,10,12,17,18), Charl Schwartzel (11,14,17,18)


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Field
Alex Čejka, Ernie Els (9,10,11,17,18), Grégory Havret, Dustin Johnson (9,10,17,18), Matt Kuchar (9,10,17,18), Davis Love III, Brandt Snedeker (17,18)


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Field
Robert Allenby (10,17,18), Paul Casey (10,11,17,18), Ben Crane (10,17,18), Jason Day (10,17,18), Luke Donald (10,11,12,14,17,18), Rickie Fowler (17,18), Bill Haas (17,18), Charley Hoffman (10), Anthony Kim, Hunter Mahan (10,17,18), Rory McIlroy (11,17,18), Jeff Overton (10), Ryan Palmer (10), Justin Rose (10,17,18), Adam Scott (10,17,18), Heath Slocum, Steve Stricker (10,13,17,18), Bo Van Pelt (10,17,18), Camilo Villegas (10), Nick Watney (10,12,17,18), Bubba Watson (10,12,13,17,18)


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Field
Martin Laird (12,17,18), Ryan Moore (17,18), Kevin Na, Kevin Streelman


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Field
Miguel Ángel Jiménez (17,18), Robert Karlsson (17,18), Francesco Molinari (17,18), Edoardo Molinari (17,18), Ian Poulter (17,18), Álvaro Quirós (14,17,18), Lee Westwood (17,18)


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Field
Aaron Baddeley (18), Rory Sabbatini (17,18), David Toms (17,18), Mark Wilson (13)


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, First round
Overnight rain softened the fairways and greens and allowed for lower-than-average scoring for the first round of a U.S. Open. The man to take greatest advantage was Rory McIlroy, maintaining his good play in recent majors: he led after the first round of the 2010 Open Championship and after all of the first three rounds of the 2011 Masters Tournament, as well as finishing T-3rd in the 2010 PGA Championship.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, First round
He carded a bogey-free 65 to sit at six-under-par, three ahead of two major winners: Y. E. Yang, the 2009 PGA champion, and Charl Schwartzel, who had beat McIlroy at the 2011 Masters and so was looking for his second straight major. The large group on two-under-par included a resurgent Sergio García, reigning Open champion Louis Oosthuizen, and several unexpected names, including journeymen Scott Hend and Alexandre Rocha. 22-year-old New Yorker Chris DeForest, playing in his first professional tournament, looked set to join them until double-bogeying his final hole for a 71.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, First round
Defending champion Graeme McDowell was well-placed after an opening 70; he was alongside Robert Rock, who had only arrived on-site at 3am that morning after visa problems. However, the marquee group of Luke Donald, Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer, numbers one, two and three in the world, all struggled, carding 74, 75 and 74 respectively. The leading amateurs were Peter Uihlein and Brad Benjamin, who were both at one-over-par.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Second round
Rory McIlroy was the headline story once again on Friday, as he continued his good form, breaking several U.S. Open scoring records in the process. Out early in the morning session, he added an eagle two on the 8th hole to a succession of pars and birdies, and a two-putt birdie at the 16th took him to 12-under-par.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Second round
This tied the record score under par for any player, at any point of the tournament in the history of the U.S. Open; Gil Morgan and Tiger Woods had previously achieved the feat, but having played only 34 holes at the time, McIlroy was the quickest to reach it. One hole later, another birdie made the Northern Irishman the first player in U.S. Open history to reach 13-under-par.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Second round
An immediate double-bogey at the 18th – McIlroy's first dropped shots of the tournament – took him back to 11-under, and a second round of 66, but the record-breaking continued: his eventual six-shot lead was the joint largest after 36 holes in major championship history. McIlroy also set the record for fewest holes to reach 10-under-par, 26 holes, (13 fewer than the prior record) and lowest 36-hole total in U.S. Open history.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Second round
The man McIlroy led was South Korea's Y. E. Yang, who added a 69 to his opening 68 to sit on his own at five-under-par; he himself was three clear of the chasing pack. Sergio García's solid form continued, and he was in the group at two-under-par, as was the consistent Matt Kuchar after a 68. Further down the field, Germany's Marcel Siem tied for the low round of the day, matching McIlroy's 66 to surge up the field after a disappointing opening 79.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Second round
Amateur Patrick Cantlay also hit a hot streak, shooting a back nine of 30 to complete a round of 67 and move to even par, tying for low amateur with Russell Henley. The premier group of Luke Donald, Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer enjoyed a slightly better day, as all three battled hard to stay inside the cutline, with Westwood leading the three at one-over-par.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Second round
Like all the afternoon starters, they were disrupted by a 42-minute delay in play as a thunderstorm passed over Congressional Country Club; this meant seven groups would need to return on Saturday morning to complete their rounds. After completion of the second round on Saturday morning, the cut fell at four-over-par, with 72 players getting through to the final two rounds.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Third round
Conditions continued to allow good scoring on Saturday, with several players taking advantage. Rory McIlroy was in no mood to relinquish his lead, however. A steady front nine saw him make his way back to 13-under-par, after Friday's closing double-bogey, when he birdied the par-five 9th. Once again 13 proved to be McIlroy's unlucky number as he bogeyed the 10th hole, but he swiftly regained his composure to become the first man ever to reach 14-under-par at a U.S. Open, before parring his way home.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Third round
Alongside him, former PGA champion Y. E. Yang scrambled well through a difficult front nine, and picked up two shots on his inward nine for a good 70, putting him in the final pairing once again on Sunday. Below him, Saturday began to live up to its "moving day" title. Jason Day, runner-up at the 2011 Masters Tournament, and world number two Lee Westwood surged through the field with best-of-the-day 65s to move into a tie for third and the penultimate pairing for Sunday; Westwood's third round playing partner Freddie Jacobson fared only one shot worse with a 66. This matched the low score amongst the early starters, made by major debutant Webb Simpson, whose 66 took him from the cutline to one-under-par, and the top 15.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Final round
Rory McIlroy began the final day eight shots clear of Y. E. Yang. McIlroy birdied the first hole and also went on to birdie the fourth. He missed the water hazard by a foot on the sixth hole, but still managed to make a par. At this point, Yang was two-under-par for the day but not challenging McIlroy.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Final round
At the par-3 10th, Yang played first and hit his tee shot to four feet; McIlroy followed with an approach which caught the top of the slope behind the flag, and trickled down past Yang's ball to finish just inches away from the cup. This birdie moved McIlroy to a record-breaking 17-under-par for the tournament. A bogey on the 12th knocked him down to 16-under. On the par-5 16th, he got to 17-under again with a birdie but lost a shot with a bogey on the 17th green, his only three-putt of the tournament, finishing on 16-under.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Final round
Two bogeys on the back nine saw Yang fall back into a tie for third place, with young Australian Jason Day moving into second place on his own; it was his second consecutive runner-up finish in the majors, in only his fourth major start; but he was a distant eight strokes behind McIlroy.


2011 U.S. Open (golf), Round summaries, Final round
Rory McIlroy and Robert Garrigus accomplished the rare feat of shooting all four rounds of golf under par in a U.S. Open. This had occurred only four times previously in the history of the event. Yang would have joined this group were it not for a bogey on the 72nd hole. McIlroy also had the additional distinction of setting the U.S. Open 72-hole low marks for total shots and shots under par, at 268 and −16, respectively. McIlroy also became only the third golfer ever to shoot all four rounds under 70 at a U.S. Open, after Lee Trevino in 1968 and Lee Janzen in 1993.


2011 U.S. Open Cup
The 2011 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was the 98th edition of the USSF's annual national soccer championship, running from June through early October. Seattle Sounders FC, who entered the competition as the two-time defending champions, successfully defended their title again.


2011 U.S. Open Cup
They became the third team in U.S. Open Cup history to win three straight U.S. Open Cups (the others being Stix, Baer and Fuller/St. Louis Central Breweries from 1933 to 1935 and Greek American AA from 1967 to 1969 — this excludes the run of Fall River Marksmen in 1930 and 1931, as the team that won in 1932, New Bedford Whalers, was the result of mergers of teams that included Fall River). As winner of the Open Cup, the Sounders earned a place in the 2012–13 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage (the Preliminary Round will be eliminated from the CONCACAF Champions League starting from 2012–13). The farthest advancing USL Pro team was the Richmond Kickers.


2011 U.S. Open Cup
Like the previous edition, the Open Cup featured 40 clubs from across the five tiers of the American soccer pyramid. This season, due to late provisional sanctioning, the North American Soccer League was not allowed to send its clubs to the tournament. The event featured eight clubs from Major League Soccer, with six automatically qualifying based on their league position in the 2010 season and two qualifying through a play-in tournament. They entered the tournament in the third round. All 11 USL Pro League clubs based in the United States, nine clubs from the USL Premier Development League, four clubs from the National Premier Soccer League, and eight United States Adult Soccer Association qualifiers began play in the first round.


2011 U.S. Open Cup, Participating teams
The tournament consisted of 40 teams, according to the following distribution:


2011 U.S. Open Cup, Open Cup Bracket
Home teams listed on top of bracket. (AET): After Extra Time


2011 U.S. Open Cup, Schedule
Note: Scorelines use the standard U.S. convention of placing the home team on the right-hand side of box scores.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final
The 2011 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final was a soccer match between the Seattle Sounders FC and the Chicago Fire, played on October 4, 2011, at CenturyLink Field in Seattle, Washington. The match was the culmination of the 2011 U.S. Open Cup, a tournament open to amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer). This was the 98th edition of the U.S. Open Cup, the oldest ongoing competition in American soccer. The Seattle Sounders FC won by defeating the Chicago Fire 2–0 with goals scored by Fredy Montero and Osvaldo Alonso. The attendance was 36,615, breaking the record for the final set the previous year when Seattle also won and hosted. Seattle became the first team since 1968 to win three consecutive U.S. Open Cup championships and the fourth team ever to do so in the 98-year history of the tournament.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final
Sounders FC automatically qualified for the third round of the U.S. Open Cup tournament by finishing among the top six in the 2010 Major League Soccer season. The Fire did not automatically qualify, and had to play through two qualification rounds before entering the official tournament. Prior to the final, Chicago and Seattle had met twice in 2011, with Seattle winning one game and the other ending in a draw.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final
The final was televised live on Fox Soccer. This was the second consecutive year the tournament final was played at CenturyLink Field. As the winner of the tournament, Seattle earned a berth in the 2012–13 CONCACAF Champions League and received a $100,000 cash prize. Chicago received a $50,000 prize as the runner-up. Following the final, criticism was raised regarding Seattle winning hosting rights for each round they played. In response, U.S. Soccer announced changes to the rules for determining the host of tournament matches.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final
The U.S. Open Cup is an annual American soccer competition open to all U.S. Soccer affiliated teams, from amateur adult club teams to the professional clubs of Major League Soccer (MLS). The 2011 tournament was the 98th edition of the oldest soccer tournament in the United States.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final
The MLS, which has teams that play in both the United States and Canada, was allowed to enter eight of its fifteen U.S.-based teams in the tournament. The top six MLS teams from the previous season's league standings qualified automatically for the tournament, while the remaining two spots were determined by preliminary qualification matches. The eight MLS entries began play in the third round of the tournament. In 2010, Seattle Sounders FC finished among the top six in the MLS overall league standings to qualify for the third round of the 2011 U.S. Open Cup. The Chicago Fire however, did not and therefore had to play a series of qualification matches against fellow MLS teams that finished outside of the top six to qualify for the Open Cup tournament.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final, Chicago Fire
Prior to reaching the 2011 final, the Chicago Fire had reached the U.S. Open Cup final five times in their 14-year history, the most of any MLS franchise, winning four out of five of the tournaments–most recently in 2006. The Fire began their 2011 Open Cup campaign on March 30, 2011, in the MLS qualification semifinals, hosting the Colorado Rapids at Shea Stadium in Peoria, Illinois. Chicago scored first with a goal from Gastón Puerari right before half time. Just one minute into the second half, the Rapids equalized with a goal from Andre Akpan. Following Akpan's goal, the match remained tied for 15 minutes until Chicago's Jalil Anibaba scored the match-winning goal in the 61st minute of play. Chicago moved on to the next round of qualification with a final score of 2–1.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final, Chicago Fire
The Fire then turned their attention to their second and final qualification match hosted by the San Jose Earthquakes at Buck Shaw Stadium in Santa Clara, California. Played on May 24, 2011, in front of 4,124 spectators, the hosts took a two-goal lead in the first half with Ellis McLoughlin and Justin Morrow scoring in the 14th and 43rd minutes, respectively. The Fire halved the deficit in the 61st minute with a goal from Orr Barouch. Fifteen minutes later the Fire tied the score with a strike from Yamith Cuesta.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final, Chicago Fire
The score remained tied until the end of regulation, leading to extra time, during which Chicago's Gonzalo Segares was ejected for dissent. Despite the Earthquakes' man advantage, the two sides remained tied during overtime, prompting a penalty shootout. In the fifth round of penalties, with Chicago leading 5–4, San Jose's Scott Sealy missed his shot as it deflected off the crossbar, giving the Fire a second qualifier victory and a berth into the third round of the 2011 U.S. Open Cup tournament.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final, Chicago Fire
In the third round, Chicago faced the Rochester Rhinos of the USL Pro division. Rochester hosted the match on June 28 at the Rhinos' Sahlen's Stadium in front of a crowd of 5,558. The Fire's Diego Cháves netted the match's only goal in the 37th minute of play, earning the Fire a spot in the quarterfinals for the first time since 2008.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final, Chicago Fire
In the quarterfinals, held on July 12, 2011, the Fire hosted MLS Eastern Conference rival the New York Red Bulls at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Illinois. Against mostly reserves for New York, the Fire won the match 4–0 with two goals from Orr Barouch and a goal each scored by Dominic Oduro and Yamith Cuesta. Due to power outages in the area following a severe thunderstorm, the game's start time was moved up from 7:30 pm to 5:00 pm local time, resulting in a late-arriving attendance of about 2,000. Following the match, uproar from Red Bull fans prompted coach Hans Backe to explain that fatigue was the reason for sending only his team's reserve players and an assistant coach to Chicago. New York had lost to DC United in league play just 2 days earlier.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final, Chicago Fire
On August 31, 2011, the Fire played host to another USL Pro side, the Richmond Kickers, in the semifinal round. On their way to the semifinals, the Kickers defeated two MLS teams in consecutive rounds. They upset the Columbus Crew and Sporting Kansas City in the third round and the quarterfinals, respectively. The semifinal was hosted by the Fire at Toyota Park in front of a crowd of 8,909. In the 32nd minute, the Fire took the lead with a goal from Sebastián Grazzini. In the 61st minute, Chicago went up 2–0 with a goal from Dominic Oduro. Seven minutes later, the Kickers cut the lead in half with a goal from Yomby William. The Fire won 2–1, earning their sixth trip to the U.S. Open Cup final.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final, Seattle Sounders FC
In 2009, Seattle Sounders FC became the second MLS expansion club to win the U.S. Open Cup tournament, after the Chicago Fire in 1998. They defended their title in 2010 to win a second straight championship. Prior to the final, Sounders FC played U.S. Open Cup home games at the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila, Washington. The facility is smaller than the club's home stadium for league matches, CenturyLink Field, but Sounders FC representatives preferred the atmosphere at Starfire for smaller cup matches.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final, Seattle Sounders FC
Sounders FC began the defense of their title on June 28, 2011, when they hosted the Kitsap Pumas of the USL Premier Development League from Bremerton, Washington. The match was played at Starfire in front of 3,811 fans. Seattle took the lead in the 39th minute when Michael Fucito scored off a headed pass from Nate Jaqua. Early in the second half Fucito doubled the lead by taking a pass from Mike Seamon and shooting past several defenders for the goal. Kitsap attempted their comeback in the 71st minute when Nikolas Besagno scored from a crossing pass from Robert Christner. In the 83rd minute, Kitsap forward Warlen Silva nearly equalized on a breakaway run, but his shot went into the side netting. Seattle was able to hold on for the 2–1 victory.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final, Seattle Sounders FC
Seattle then hosted their quarterfinal match on July 13 against a fellow MLS side, the Los Angeles Galaxy. The match was again held at Starfire, with an attendance of 4,322. Nate Jaqua scored following a pass from Pat Noonan in the 4th minute. In the 25th minute, Fredy Montero scored with a left-footed shot from an assist from Jaqua giving Seattle a 2–0 lead. The Galaxy gained a goal back in the 40th minute when Adam Cristman scored on a cross from Chris Birchall. In the 74th minute, Seattle midfielder Lamar Neagle scored from a cross by Álvaro Fernández, extending Seattle's lead to 2 goals.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final, Seattle Sounders FC
On August 30, 2011, Sounders FC hosted their semifinal opponent, FC Dallas, in front of 4,593 at Starfire Sports Complex. Both teams started their first team players for the match. Seattle applied offensive pressure for most of the first half and broke through with a goal in the 40th minute. Fredy Montero, who had just missed with a bicycle kick shot moments earlier, took a curling left-footed shot in front of goal for the score. Dallas nearly equalized in the 49th minute when Marvin Chavez had a shot bounce hard off the goal post.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final, Seattle Sounders FC
Dallas continued to attack for most of the second half, and Chavez again had a chance to equalize just before the final whistle, but his shot went high over the goal. With a final score of 1–0, Seattle secured their third straight appearance in the U.S. Open Cup final match.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Road to the final, Seattle Sounders FC
Following the match, Dallas coach Schellas Hyndman complained about how hosts are determined for U.S. Open Cup matches saying, "for me, this is one of the best events – the Lamar Hunt Open Cup – but I'd really like to see it into a structure where it's not a bid system. A bid system is where one team will buy the games because they're bidding higher." He continued, "it could go to the higher seeds, instead of a bid system where you're spending money, or it could be pre-determined. I think that brings out all the fairness to the event."


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Pre-match, Venue selection
On August 26, 2011, U.S. Soccer announced the potential sites for the final, depending on the outcome of the semifinals. It was determined through a blind bid process that if Seattle qualified for the final, they would host it at CenturyLink Field regardless of the opponent, for the second straight year. If FC Dallas defeated Sounders FC in the semifinals, they would host the Richmond Kickers at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas, or visit the Chicago Fire at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Illinois, depending on the outcome of the other semifinal match.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Pre-match, Venue selection
Seattle defeated Dallas and Chicago defeated Richmond in the semifinals, which resulted in Sounders FC hosting the Fire in the 2011 Open Cup final at CenturyLink Field. Seattle had hosted the previous final, in 2010, drawing a crowd of 31,311 and breaking the 81-year-old attendance record for the event set in 1929 when New York Hakoah defeated the Madison Kennel Club of St. Louis.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Pre-match, Venue selection
Tickets for the 2011 final went on sale to the public on September 6. By September 19, it was announced that 27,000 tickets had already been sold. Nine days later, ticket sales surpassed 30,000 and it was announced that the "Hawks Nest" bleacher seats in the north end of CenturyLink Field would be made available for the event. In the week leading up to the final, Sounders FC owner and general manager Adrian Hanauer indicated that sections of the stadium would continue to be opened to meet demand. He stated that "no paying customer would be turned away."


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Pre-match, Analysis
With a better MLS regular season record and home field advantage, Sounders FC were the favorites to win the match; however, the Fire had improved throughout the year through better play from their wingers and midfielders.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Pre-match, Analysis
Seattle and Chicago had met twice in MLS regular season matches in 2011. The first meeting, on April 9, 2011, resulted in a 2–1 win for Sounders FC in front of their home crowd. It was Seattle's 5th game of the season. The second meeting was hosted by Chicago on June 4, 2011, and resulted in a 0–0 draw. It was the first game for Chicago coach Frank Klopas as he replaced Carlos de los Cobos, who was fired by the club the previous week. As a player, Klopas had scored the winning goal for Chicago in the 1998 U.S. Open Cup final. As coach, ESPNChicago.com analyst Charlie Corr credited him with the team's successful shift in tactics since previously meeting Seattle.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Pre-match, Analysis
In the days leading up to the final, Seattle had recently finished a long road trip. Chicago's schedule made the match their third in a week's time. In preparation for the final, the managers fielded weaker sides during their respective league matches two days before the game, allowing them to rest several regular starters. The Sounders were playing well, having already clinched a MLS playoff berth. A victory over the New England Revolution on the weekend prior to the final gave the team a three-game winning streak. The Fire had defeated Real Salt Lake on September 28, but their playoff chances were diminished after a tie against the Houston Dynamo on the weekend prior to the final.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Match
The match was televised live on Fox Soccer with coverage starting at 7 pm PT (02:00 UTC). The attendance of 36,615 was a record crowd for the competition's final. Seattle's Emerald City Supporters unveiled tifo before kickoff depicting the Grim Reaper over the graves of D.C. United, the Columbus Crew, and the Chicago Fire.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Match
Injuries to key players were a concern for both teams in the buildup to the final. For Seattle, midfielder Mauro Rosales's knee was injured and he did not recover in time for the final. Also, Sounders FC defender James Riley was recovering from a concussion. He practiced in the week prior to the final and started in the match. For Chicago, midfielder Sebastian Grazzini was a key player who was questionable before the match. Grazzini began the game on the bench for Chicago.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Match, First half
The match started with a frenetic pace as both teams earned free kick attempts within the opening two minutes. Seattle forward Mike Fucito had the first goal scoring opportunity of the match in the eighth minute as he broke free in the penalty area and took a shot on goal. The shot was kicked away by Fire goalkeeper Sean Johnson. Neither side appeared to gain control as the match progressed through the first 10 minutes.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Match, First half
In the 11th minute, Chicago midfielder Marco Pappa slipped between two defenders in the middle of the field and had a long range shot go just wide of the net. Two minutes later Pappa again had a long shot which forced Seattle goalkeeper Kasey Keller to make a save. Pappa was responsible for all five of his team's shots in the first half. In the 26th minute, Patrick Nyarko was shown a yellow card by referee Alex Prus for a hard tackle on Seattle's Osvaldo Alonso near the touch-line.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Match, First half
As the match passed the 30 minute mark, Seattle began to take control as they held possession and created more scoring opportunities. Five minutes before half time Marco Pappa again tested the Seattle goalkeeper as he cut inside a defender and took a shot from 30 yards. The shot forced Kasey Keller to make a diving save. In the 44th minute Seattle striker Mike Fucito rushed onto a poor backpass by the Chicago defense and then backhealed a pass to Alvaro Fernandez who was streaking into the box.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Match, First half
His shot was stopped with a reaching save by Chicago goalkeeper Sean Johnson. One minute later, in first half injury time, Seattle striker Fredy Montero nearly scored with a 20-yard shot that flew past the keeper and bounced off the left goal post. The half ended with the score tied 0–0.


2011 U.S. Open Cup Final, Match, Second half
At half time, Seattle midfielder Erik Frieberg was subbed on for Alvaro Fernandez, who had suffered a slight concussion during the first half. Shortly after the second half began, Seattle nearly broke the stalemate. In the 53rd minute, a Sounders FC throw-in was flicked on to Mike Fucito, who lifted a shot up and over the keeper. His shot was chased by several Chicago defenders as it crossed the goal mouth and bounced off the far goal post and back into play. In the 78th minute, Montero broke the deadlock on a corner kick taken by Erik Friberg. Sounders FC defender Jeff Parke headed the corner kick on goal and Chicago goalkeeper Sean Johnson saved the shot. The ball rebounded to the feet of Fredy Montero, who tapped the ball into the net for in the first goal of the game. Sounders FC now had a 1–0 lead.