Great Hanshin earthquake of northeastern Japan. The Great Hanshin earthquake belonged to a third type, called an "inland shallow earthquake". Earthquakes of this type occur along active faults. Even at lower magnitudes, they can be very destructive because they often occur near populated areas and because their hypocenters are located less than 20 km below the surface. The Great Hanshin earthquake began north of the island of Awaji, which lies just south of Kobe. It spread toward the southwest along the Nojima Fault on Awaji and toward the northeast along the Suma and Suwayama faults, which run through the center of Kobe. Observations
June 2011 Christchurch earthquake June 2011 Christchurch earthquake The June 2011 Christchurch earthquake was a shallow magnitude 6.3 M earthquake that occurred on 13 June 2011 at 14:20 NZST (02:20 UTC). It was centred at a depth of 6 km (3.8 mi), about 10 km (6 mi) from Christchurch, which had previously been devastated by another magnitude 6.3 M earthquake in February 2011. The June quake was preceded by a magnitude 5.9 M tremor that struck the region at a slightly deeper 8.9 km (5.5 mi). The United States Geological Survey reported a magnitude of 6.0 M at a depth of about 9 km