A strong magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck on December 8 off northern Japan, about 70–80 km from Misawa, at a depth of about 50 km. The JMA initially issued a “major” tsunami warning for Aomori, Iwate and Hokkaido, with waves of up to 3 meters expected. The alert was later lifted, although small anomalous waves of around 40 cm were recorded in some coastal locations.
