Seismic Swarm Detected Under Tenerife
SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, 4 July – The National Geographic Institute (IGN) has reported a new swarm of seismic activity beneath Tenerife, comprising around 500 minor tremors between 6pm on Friday and 4am on Saturday. Fortunately, these quakes were not felt by residents.
The IGN noted that this episode bears a repetitive pattern similar to one recorded in February. The tremors are mainly located to the west of Las Cañadas del Teide. Out of the 500 events recorded, only three have been pinpointed due to the low strength of the signals detected.
These low-magnitude signals were located collectively, approximately 10 kilometres below sea level. The IGN warned that the number, magnitudes, and depths of these earthquakes are provisional and may change after further analysis.
The recent tremors fall within a pattern of similar seismic activities that have occurred in Tenerife since 2016, although the current disturbances exhibit lower energy levels than previous events, with the last significant swarm occurring in February 2026.
The IGN suggests that this activity could be linked to the movement or interaction of magma fluids within the rock layers below. However, they clarified that such seismicity does not necessarily indicate an imminent volcanic eruption.
The institute has alerted the Civil Protection Service of the Canary Islands and the National Civil Protection System about the increase in seismic activity, in line with their monitoring protocols. It also maintains a network of over a hundred monitoring stations across Tenerife to track seismic activity, ground deformation, and geochemical parameters, ensuring any changes related to volcanic risk can be promptly identified.
