An earthquake of magnitude 5.0 occurred around noon on Thursday, August 28th, 2025, at 12:12 pm local time near Okinawa, Okinawa Shi, Japan, as reported by the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ).According to preliminary data, the quake was located at a shallow depth of 10. km. Shallow earthquakes are felt more strongly than deeper ones as they are closer to the surface. The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.A second report was later issued by France's Réseau National de Surveillance Sismique (RéNaSS), which listed it as a magnitude 5.1 earthquake. A third agency, the citizen-seismograph network of RaspberryShake, reported the same quake at magnitude 5.0.Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should have been widely felt by almost everyone in the area of the epicenter. It might have caused light to moderate damage. Moderate shaking probably occurred in Kadena (pop. 13,700) located 2 km from the epicenter, Okinawa (pop. 125,500) 3 km away, Chatan (pop. 27,800) 6 km away, and Yomitan (pop. 40,500) 6 km away.In Ishikawa (pop. 22,400) located 8 km from the epicenter, Gushikawa (pop. 65,300) 9 km away, Katsuren-haebaru (pop. 34,200) 10 km away, Ginowan (pop. 91,800) 11 km away, and Naha (pop. 317,400) 19 km away, the quake should have been felt as light shaking.VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant news about the quake become available. If you’re in the area, please send us your experience through our reporting mechanism, either online or via our mobile app. This will help us provide more first-hand updates to anyone around the globe who wants to know more about this quake.Earthquake data: Date & time: Aug 28, 2025 12:12 pm (GMT +9) local time (28 Aug 2025 03:12 GMT)Magnitude: 5.0Depth: 10.00 kmEpicenter latitude / longitude: 26.36°N / 127.78°E (Okinawa Shi, Okinawa, Japan)Primary data source: GFZ