What is 2011 Tōhoku earthquake?

The 2011 Tōhoku earthquake was a giant shake that made the ground move very strongly near the coast of Japan.

Imagine you're sitting on a big, soft couch that's been stretched out and tied down. When someone suddenly pulls the rope, the couch jumps up and down, that’s like what happened with the earthquake. It shook the land under the sea so hard that it caused a huge tsunami, or giant wave.

The ground beneath Japan is made of big pieces called tectonic plates. These plates are always moving slowly, but sometimes they get stuck. In 2011, one plate suddenly moved very quickly under another, like a foot sliding out from under someone’s shoe, and that caused the earthquake.

The shaking on the sea floor made water rise up really high, creating a tsunami. This wave traveled super fast across the ocean and hit Japan's coast with enormous force, flooding cities and causing damage to buildings and homes.

It was like when you drop a big rock in a small pool, the water jumps up and splashes everywhere!