TOKYO, Nov. 14 (UPI) -- A major earthquake struck Tuesday morning off the east coast of Honshu, Japan's northernmost major island, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center reported.
While the quake was large enough to be felt in Tokyo, more than 300 miles from its epicenter, it appears to have done little damage.
"It's a major earthquake, but it's quite a ways away from population," Waverly Person of the U.S. Geological Survey told CNN. The USGS said the quake registered 6.9 on the Richter Scale.
The center said there was no danger of a Pacific-wide tsunami. It predicted a tsunami of up to 20 inches above normal but warnings were later dropped.
The quake that created the disastrous Boxing Day Tsunami in the Indian Ocean just after Christmas registered more than 9 on the Richter scale, making it one of the biggest ever recorded. The October quake centered in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir was a 7.5. The Richter scale is logarithmic, but quakes of magnitude 7 or more are considered major.
