QuakeScout
Magnitude2.1

Reported by EMSC9d ago

M2.1 earthquake in Albania

Thursday, September 17, 2026, 14:00:02 UTC · 41.079°N, 19.805°E

A magnitude 2.1 earthquake struck in Albania on Thursday, September 17, 2026, 14:00:02 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow).

Magnitude
2.1
Minor · ml
Depth
15 km
Shallow
Reported by
EMSC
Agency IGEO
Nearest tracker
28 km
from Tirana

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

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

21 kg of TNT

That is about 1/706,872 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 22,387 times more energy.

Tectonic setting

262 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 3 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km since this event; the largest was M2.2 on September 25, 2026. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

1h6h1d3d7dMainshock M2.1
Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.
  1. 2.1Albania1d ago · 10 km E of this epicenter
  2. 2.2Albania1d ago · 19 km SE of this epicenter
  3. 2.0Albania6d ago · 45 km SE of this epicenter

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 336 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 · 297 km E of this epicenter
  2. 6.96 km E of Stari Bar, MontenegroApril 15, 1979 · 123 km NW of this epicenter
  3. 6.86 km W of Stara Kresna, BulgariaApril 4, 1904 · 287 km E of this epicenter
  4. 6.76 km NW of Lukovo, North MacedoniaNovember 30, 1967 · 71 km NE of this epicenter
  5. 6.77 km NE of Anávra, GreeceApril 30, 1954 · 287 km SE of this epicenter
  6. 6.73 km SW of Kuklis, North MacedoniaMarch 8, 1931 · 240 km E of this epicenter
  7. 6.635 km NW of Itháki, GreeceApril 22, 1948 · 283 km S of this epicenter
  8. 6.617 km NNW of Bilisht, AlbaniaFebruary 18, 1911 · 98 km E of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 126 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 4,899 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1851M6.6

    Vlore (Valona),Berat; Turkey

    12 Oct 1851 · 65 km away · intensity XI

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

  2. 1963M6.0

    Macedonia: Skopje

    26 Jul 1963 · 168 km away · intensity X

    1,070 deaths$1.0 billion damage

  3. 1851

    Berat

    17 Oct 1851 · 65 km away · intensity X

    400 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

  4. 1920M6.2

    Tepelene, Dragoti, Peshtani, Maricaj

    26 Nov 1920 · 99 km away · intensity XI

    200 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

  5. 1979M6.9

    Montenegro

    15 Apr 1979 · 123 km away · intensity IX

    131 deaths$2.7 billion damagetsunami

  6. 1905M6.6

    Shkoder

    1 Jun 1905 · 115 km away · intensity X

    120 deaths$24 million damage

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

Nearby trackers

Closest city pages