QuakeScout
Magnitude2.3

Reported by EMSC11d ago

M2.3 earthquake in Albania

Tuesday, September 15, 2026, 23:42:31 UTC · 40.799°N, 20.716°E

A magnitude 2.3 earthquake struck in Albania on Tuesday, September 15, 2026, 23:42:31 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow).

Magnitude
2.3
Minor · ml
Depth
15 km
Shallow
Reported by
EMSC
Agency IGEO
Nearest tracker
37 km
from Ohrid

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

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

43 kg of TNT

That is about 1/354,275 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 11,220 times more energy.

Tectonic setting

258 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Aegean Sea and Eurasian 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 9 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km since this event; the largest was M2.9 on September 24, 2026. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

M31h6h1d3d7dMainshock M2.3
Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.
  1. 2.0Albania1d ago · 7 km NE of this epicenter
  2. 2.8Greece2d ago · 37 km E of this epicenter
  3. 2.9Greece2d ago · 37 km E of this epicenter
  4. 2.1Albania3d ago · 37 km S of this epicenter
  5. 2.5Albania4d ago · 21 km S of this epicenter
  6. 2.7Albania5d ago · 18 km SE of this epicenter
  7. 2.0Albania5d ago · 13 km NE of this epicenter
  8. 2.0Albania6d ago · 44 km W of this epicenter

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 461 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 7.07 km SE of Stara Kresna, BulgariaApril 4, 1904 · 237 km NE of this epicenter
  2. 6.96 km E of Stari Bar, MontenegroApril 15, 1979 · 191 km NW of this epicenter
  3. 6.97 km NNE of Ágios Nikólaos, GreeceSeptember 26, 1932 · 261 km E of this epicenter
  4. 6.86 km W of Stara Kresna, BulgariaApril 4, 1904 · 229 km NE of this epicenter
  5. 6.815 km ENE of Póros, GreeceAugust 12, 1953 · 292 km S of this epicenter
  6. 6.76 km NW of Lukovo, North MacedoniaNovember 30, 1967 · 67 km N of this epicenter
  7. 6.77 km NE of Anávra, GreeceApril 30, 1954 · 214 km SE of this epicenter
  8. 6.73 km SW of Kuklis, North MacedoniaMarch 8, 1931 · 174 km NE of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 158 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 6,312 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1851M6.6

    Vlore (Valona),Berat; Turkey

    12 Oct 1851 · 92 km away · intensity XI

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

  2. 1963M6.0

    Macedonia: Skopje

    26 Jul 1963 · 153 km away · intensity X

    1,070 deaths$1.0 billion damage

  3. 1953M7.2

    Lixouri-Argostoli (Kephallenia)

    12 Aug 1953 · 278 km away · intensity X

    476 deaths$100 million damagetsunami

  4. 1851

    Berat

    17 Oct 1851 · 92 km away · intensity X

    400 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

  5. 1767M6.7

    Kefalonia

    11 Jul 1767 · 282 km away · intensity X

    303 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

  6. 1867M7.2

    Cephalonia

    4 Feb 1867 · 286 km away · intensity X

    223 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami

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

Nearby trackers

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