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Niigata Earthquake Report For Sky & Telescope Magazine

Japan Standard Time 17;56 23rd October, an very strong earthquake, magnitude 6.8, occurred in Japan. It has been reported that the seismic center is the middle of Niigata prefecture. The intensity at near place of the seismic center was 7 on the Japanese seven-stage seismic scale . After that,many aftershock occurred as same magnitude as the first earthquake and continue until now though the intensity become weaker. The intensity 7 earthquake on the Japanese seismic scale occurred 10 years ago at Kobe area. At that time, more than 6000 people died. This earthquake is same intensity as Kobe. But this time, about 31 people died in Niigata This time, many amateur astronomers and some public observatory, planetarium were struck by the earthquake. The public observatory at Sumon village has a 40 cm Newtonian telescope, it fell down with pillar. And dome slip out from a rail. A 15cm refractor telescope of a Nagaoka junior high school at attached to Niigata University fell down with pillar, too.They tell us what strong the quake was !! (Photo1) There are some planetarium at near place of the seismic center, they stop the activity and nobody knows when they will be open again. Fortunately, Tainai Observatory and Kamihayashi Observatory are not received any damage, because they are more 80km away from the seismic center. Shigeki Murakami who discovered Snyder-Murakami comet(C/2002E2) is Tookamachi-city 20km away from the seismic center. Almost of all furniture and goods were fell down in his house, but his computer survived by a miracle. And he continues comet hunting every morning under a difficult situation. After the earthquake, the electricity was cut off at 290 thousand house around his house. Murakami said that he could observe only 1 hour through a rift in the cloud but the sky was very clear and dark Niigata area will be snow season soon. And it is hardly the fine weather during that season. Even now, many people stay at tent who lost house at the earthquake victim. Shigemi Numazawa This report was completed thanks to many amateur astronomer. Among of stricken area's images they sent me, I will show some of them below. And the following people cooperate, too. Kazuhiro Tsukada, Kazuya Hatayama, Nobuaki Takehi, Satoshi Yamada, Nanayo Wakiya

Goto Optical Mfg. Co. Uprooted 15cm refractor telescope of a Nagaoka junior high school at attached to Niigata University	Planetarium and Public Obs. around the seismic center
- Shigeki Murakami, Yoshiyuki Kaise Look of the stricken area and inside his office. took images when he joined the investigation by staff of a Forestry Agency. Road to the observe site---Horinouti-machi area	details of the earthquake NIED National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention. (in English) ----->(in Japanese)
Eiji Watanabe Horinouti-machi area	ﾊ
Shiori Hikima suffered big damage road at Tooka-machi	ﾊ
Kenichi Watanabe Planetarium "doom of Nakasato Kirara" and sin of close	ﾊ
Toshio Nagumo Road at Tooka-machi area	ﾊ
Shigemi Numazawa Friend's house at south-east area of Nagaoka-city and surrounding	ﾊ