QuakeScout
Magnitude2.5

Reported by EMSC29d ago

M2.5 earthquake in Adriatic Sea

Friday, August 28, 2026, 14:34:32 UTC · 40.003°N, 19.549°E

A magnitude 2.5 earthquake struck in Adriatic Sea on Friday, August 28, 2026, 14:34:32 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow).

Magnitude
2.5
Minor · ml
Depth
15 km
Shallow
Reported by
EMSC
Agency IGEO
Nearest tracker
51 km
from Vlore

Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

85 kg of TNT

That is about 1/177,558 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 5,623 times more energy.

Tectonic setting

153 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Eurasian and African plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.

Depth: shallow

15 km

Shallow earthquakes (under 70 km) produce the strongest surface shaking for their size, so they are the ones most likely to cause damage near the epicenter.

After the main event

Aftershocks within 50 km

USGS and EMSC list 19 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km since this event; the largest was M4.8 on August 29, 2026. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

M3M4M51h6h1d3d7d14d30dMainshock M2.5
Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.
  1. 2.2Albania3d ago · 27 km E of this epicenter
  2. 2.6Adriatic Sea5d ago · 39 km N of this epicenter
  3. 3.5Albania8d ago · 34 km NE of this epicenter
  4. 2.4Albania9d ago · 34 km E of this epicenter
  5. 2.2Albania11d ago · 35 km E of this epicenter
  6. 2.6Albania12d ago · 32 km E of this epicenter
  7. 2.3Albania12d ago · 30 km E of this epicenter
  8. 2.0Albania14d ago · 36 km E of this epicenter

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 495 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 7.026 km SW of Lixoúri, GreeceJanuary 17, 1983 · 228 km S of this epicenter
  2. 6.96 km E of Stari Bar, MontenegroApril 15, 1979 · 234 km N of this epicenter
  3. 6.815 km ENE of Póros, GreeceAugust 12, 1953 · 235 km SE of this epicenter
  4. 6.832 km SW of Lithakiá, GreeceOctober 25, 2018 · 290 km S of this epicenter
  5. 6.7Ionian SeaNovember 15, 1959 · 256 km S of this epicenter
  6. 6.76 km NW of Lukovo, North MacedoniaNovember 30, 1967 · 175 km NE of this epicenter
  7. 6.77 km NE of Anávra, GreeceApril 30, 1954 · 240 km E of this epicenter
  8. 6.635 km NW of Itháki, GreeceApril 22, 1948 · 175 km SE of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 174 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 17,817 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1857

    Calabria,Montemurro

    16 Sep 1857 · 278 km away

    10,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

  2. 1851M6.6

    Vlore (Valona),Berat; Turkey

    12 Oct 1851 · 57 km away · intensity XI

    2,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami

  3. 1963M6.0

    Macedonia: Skopje

    26 Jul 1963 · 276 km away · intensity X

    1,070 deaths$1.0 billion damage

  4. 1836

    Rossano,Crosia,Craco,Basilicata

    24 Apr 1836 · 256 km away · intensity XI

    589 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

  5. 1953M7.2

    Lixouri-Argostoli (Kephallenia)

    12 Aug 1953 · 218 km away · intensity X

    476 deaths$100 million damagetsunami

  6. 1854

    Connici,Cosenza,Pietrafitta,Paterno

    12 Feb 1854 · 289 km away · intensity X

    468 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

Nearby trackers

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