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Health & Science22h 41m ago
A team led by Sunyoung Park published a paper in Science, concluding that a seismic wave from the 2011 magnitude-9 Tohoku-Oki earthquake traveled to Earth’s outer core, reflected, and returned to the surface, causing a 5-6 millimeter eastward displacement across Japan.
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Japan
Who
Sunyoung Park, University of Chicago; Kanamori; Rivera
What
A team led by Sunyoung Park published a paper in Science, concluding that a seismic wave from the 2011 magnitude-9 Tohoku-Oki earthquake traveled to Earth’s outer core, reflected, and returned to the surface, causing a 5-6 millimeter eastward displacement across Japan.
When
Thu, 18 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMT · 22h 41m ago
Where
Japan ·
Why
The displacement was caused by an ScS wave, which reflected off the liquid outer core and returned to Japan's tectonic plate boundaries with sufficient energy to trigger small additional slip.
The Frontline Impact
How this affects you
This finding alters seismic hazard modeling by demonstrating that large earthquake effects can extend much further and through deeper geological pathways, identifying a previously unrecognised source of seismic hazard.
Story chain
2 events in this thread- Health & Science22h 41m agoA team led by Sunyoung Park published a paper in Science proposing that a seismic wave from the 2011 Tohoku-Oki earthquake travelled to Earth's outer core, reflected, and returned to the surface, causing a five to six millimetre eastward displacement across Japan.Open article
- Currently Reading22h 41m agoA team led by Sunyoung Park published a paper in Science, concluding that a seismic wave from the 2011 magnitude-9 Tohoku-Oki earthquake traveled to Earth’s outer core, reflected, and returned to the surface, causing a 5-6 millimeter eastward displacement across Japan.