A long-term slow slip event from 1996 to 1997 in the Kii Channel, Japan

We present a long-term slow slip event from 1996 to 1997 in the Kii Channel along the Nankai Trough in southwestern Japan that has not been reported previously. The long-term slow slip event had a moment magnitude Mw 6.7 and a duration of 1 to 1.5 years. The magnitude of the event was smaller than those of the Tokai (Mw 7.1) and the Bungo Channel (Mw 7.0 to 7.1) events along the Nankai Trough. The slip was located slightly shallower than the depth of the low-frequency earthquakes around the Kii Channel. Long-term slow slips have been identified in various regions along the Nankai Trough, except in the Kii Peninsula. Unveiling the history of long-term slow slips is expected to contribute to an understanding of plate boundary characteristics as well as to the prediction of large earthquakes along the Nankai Trough.