The Meteorological Agency on Monday upgraded the magnitude of the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, which devastated Kobe and surrounding areas, to 7.3 from 7.2 based on a revision in its method of determining magnitudes.
Agency officials said a committee charged with the revision decided to change the method shortly after a powerful earthquake hit Tottori Prefecture and its vicinity on Oct. 6.
The change was made because that temblor's magnitude was estimated to be greater than that of the Kobe quake, which killed more than 6,400.
The Tottori quake's magnitude was 7.3, while the Hanshin quake was 7.2. The magnitude of the Tottori quake was left unchanged.
The magnitude of a 1994 quake in northern Japan and four Russian-held islands east of Hokkaido was changed to 8.2 from 8.1.
Another quake, which occurred along the Pacific in the Tohoku region the same year, was changed to 7.6 from 7.5.
The magnitude of the 2001 Geiyo Earthquake, which jolted mainly Ehime and Hiroshima prefectures on March 23, killing two and injuring at least 210, was revised to 6.7 from 6.4.