Japan's Meteorological Agency mistakenly issued an earthquake warning estimating a magnitude 9.9 quake and forecasting strong shaking across northern and central Japan, including Tokyo.
The warning was issued at approximately 12:36 p. m.
Friday in Japan and canceled at 12:48 p. m.
, according to NHK.
The alert identified the Kuril Islands region as the location and estimated a depth of 140 kilometers (87 miles).
According to NHK, the warning was not followed by shaking in Japan, and no tsunami warnings were issued.
The meteorological agency said it will investigate the error.
The U. S.
Geological Survey measured the actual earthquake at magnitude 6.9 and placed its epicenter approximately 76 kilometers (47 miles) northeast of Ozernovskiy, Russia.
The USGS estimated the earthquake's depth at 143.2 kilometers (89 miles), close to the depth shown in Japan's erroneous early warning.
A magnitude 9.9 earthquake would have been the largest ever recorded, exceeding the magnitude 9.5 earthquake that struck Chile in 1960, according to the USGS.
According to the USGS, a magnitude 9.9 earthquake would release roughly 32,000 times as much energy as the actual magnitude 6.9 earthquake near Kamchatka.
