A rare seismic doublet struck northwestern Venezuela on 24 June 2026, producing two powerful earthquake events within just 39 seconds of one another. Unlike a typical sequence in which a large mainshock is followed by smaller aftershocks, a seismic doublet consists of two earthquakes of nearly equal magnitude that occur close together in both time …
A new study has found that tectonic stress on Southern California’s major fault systems has reached exceptionally high levels, raising important questions about future earthquake hazards in one of the most heavily populated regions of the United States. Researchers examined the San Andreas and San Jacinto fault systems and concluded that stress accumulation along parts …
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Stanford researchers have identified a surprising and previously unknown connection between deep underwater earthquakes and the growth of massive phytoplankton blooms at the ocean surface. Phytoplankton are microscopic, plant-like organisms that float in sunlit surface waters and form the base of the marine food web. Beyond supporting ocean life, they play a critical role in …
Although earthquakes remain impossible to predict precisely, scientists are developing advanced computational models that significantly improve understanding of how seismic events interact with the Earth’s subsurface. A magnitude 7.0 earthquake that struck Alaska on December 6, 2025, highlights the importance of this work. While large events are relatively rare, seismic activity is constant: roughly 55 …
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New research reveals that cracks deep within Earth’s crust can reseal themselves within hours after certain types of earthquakes known as slow slip events. These “silent” earthquakes differ from typical destructive quakes because movement along the fault occurs gradually over days, weeks, or even months rather than in violent seconds. This rapid fault healing challenges …
MIT geologists have achieved a breakthrough in understanding how an earthquake releases and partitions its energy by creating “lab quakes,” miniature analogs of natural seismic events. Their work provides the first complete measurement of how earthquake energy is distributed among ground shaking, heat generation, and rock fracturing. Traditional field studies can detect surface shaking, but …
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A magnitude 8.8 earthquake has struck off the coast of Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula, ranking among the ten most powerful earthquakes ever recorded and the strongest worldwide since 2011. The quake originated about 20 kilometers beneath the surface and caused significant damage in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the closest major city, located just 119 kilometers from the epicenter. Injuries …
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Researchers Ross Stein and Peter Bird have proposed a hypothesis that many major continental transform earthquakes begin on branch faults, which they describe as “on-ramps” that lead to ruptures on larger, more mature faults. This theory, if validated, could have significant implications for earthquake monitoring and preparedness, potentially altering how and where seismic networks are …
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In September 2023, a globally detected seismic signal sparked curiosity among scientists when it persisted for up to nine days. This signal, unlike typical earthquake waves, was traced back to a massive rockslide in Greenland’s Dickson Fjord. A multinational team of researchers, including those from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), set out to uncover …
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A groundbreaking study by Társilo Girona, a research assistant professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) Geophysical Institute, suggests that advance notice of major earthquakes could be possible by detecting precursory seismicity—low-level tectonic activity occurring days to months before significant quakes. This study, published in Nature Communications and co-authored by geologist Kyriaki Drymoni of …
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