A government panel is examining ways to assess possible signs of a mega-quake along the vast Nankai Trough off Japan’s Pacific coast. The panel, which was set up in September, is tasked with reviewing current disaster preparedness programs that focus on the possibility of a giant quake striking a limited area in Tokai, in central Japan. Image: Reproduction/NHK Japan’s Meteorological Agency is monitoring the movements of tectonic plates around the clock using devices that can gauge stress underground. The agency has installed the instruments at 27 locations in the central prefecture of Shizuoka and elsewhere. But experts had not predicted that a magnitude-9 quake would hit northeastern Japan in March of 2011. The government now assumes a mega-quake of similar magnitude will occur along the Nankai Trough off central to southwestern Japan. On Tuesday, a research group of the panel compiled a draft report on their studies. The report pointed...
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