A meteorological expert in Japan emphasized that there is no scientific basis for the so-called “earthquake clouds” and urged people to be cautious not to spread misinformation, following social media posts about the appearance of such clouds after the earthquake on August 8 off the coast of Miyazaki Prefecture.
The 7.1 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Miyazaki prompted the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) to issue its first warning about the potential for a megathrust earthquake in the Nankai Trough.
A house destroyed after the earthquake in Osaki, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, on August 8, 2024. (Photo: Kyodo/TTXVN)
Numerous rumors have circulated on social media, such as: “I heard that earthquake clouds appear before an earthquake” or “There are three rows of earthquake clouds.”
Kentaro Araki, a cloud expert and senior researcher at the JMA’s Meteorological Research Institute, asserted that it is impossible to determine the impact of an earthquake by looking at clouds.
According to Araki, clouds are classified into 10 types, including cirrus clouds, stratus clouds, and cumulonimbus clouds, based on altitude, shape, and other factors. There are over 400 types when categorized by transparency and other elements. Among them, airplane clouds and striped wave clouds are often mistaken for earthquake clouds, but he confirmed that “meteorology can explain the shapes and conditions of all clouds commonly referred to as earthquake clouds“.
Araki also posted on his X account on August 8 that “Clouds cannot be a precursor to earthquakes.”
Earthquake clouds have become a topic of discussion each time a significant earthquake occurs. Since 1983, after the earthquake off the coast of Akita Prefecture, such rumors have circulated, and the Mainichi Shimbun reported at the time that the JMA stated there was no basis for such clouds. The agency asserted that: “there is no scientific explanation supporting the occurrence of seismic clouds related to earthquakes.”
