Moderately strong M5.1 earthquake off Crete felt across western Greece
A moderately strong earthquake registered by the EMSC as M5.1 (downgraded from M5.8) hit offshore Crete near Antikythera, Greece at 16:26 local time (13:26 UTC) on July 23, 2025. The agency is reporting a depth of 50 km (31 miles).
Epicenter of M5.1 earthquake off the coast of Crete, Greece on July 23, 2025. Credit: TW/SAM, Google
According to data from the Geodynamic Institute of the National Observatory of Athens, the epicenter was located approximately 21 km (13 miles) southeast of Antikythera, in the Kissamos Bay region of northwestern Crete.
This is about 160 km (99 miles) W of Irakleion and about 180 km (112 miles) SSE of Santorini, where thousands of earthquakes have been recorded since early 2025 as part of a long-running seismic swarm affecting the broader Santorini–Anafi–Amorgos region.
The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) initially reported the earthquake as M5.8 at a depth of 45 km (28 miles), later revising it to M5.3 and further to M5.1.
The shaking was felt across much of Crete, particularly in the regional units of Chania and Heraklion. Residents described strong but brief ground movement.
Despite the widespread perception, there have been no reports of injuries or structural damage. Emergency services were not mobilized, and civil protection authorities have not issued any alerts.
Due to its intermediate depth, the earthquake generated significant ground motion over a broad area but did not produce surface-level rupture or tsunami risk. Earthquakes of similar depth in this region typically result in low damage potential but are often widely felt.
The broader region, known as the Hellenic arc, is among the most seismically active in Europe. It has produced large historical earthquakes, including M8.0 events in 365 and 1303 AD. The same area experienced M6.1–M6.2 events in May 2025, which led to minor damage and regional alerts.
In addition to the May earthquakes, the region near Antikythera and across the southern Aegean has experienced a swarm of shallow microquakes in recent months.
These tremors, similar to the intense swarm observed northeast of Santorini, are believed to reflect increased stress conditions within the crust, possibly linked to fluid migration along active fault zones.
Regional seismicity
References:
1 M5.1 earthquake Crete, Greece – EMSC – July 23, 2025
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