Minor Earthquake Strikes Off Wicklow Coast

A 0.4 magnitude earthquake was recorded in the Irish Sea on Saturday evening, approximately 65 kilometres off the coast of Arklow, County Wicklow.

According to the British Geological Survey (BGS), the quake struck at 7.51 p.m. at a depth of 9 kilometres.

Earthquakes in the Irish Sea are occasionally detected, particularly in the areas offshore Wexford and near Skerries in Dublin. The last recorded Irish Sea quake, on May 22, measured 1.5 magnitude.

A 1.4 magnitude quake was also recorded in March in The Celtic Sea, approximately 95 kilometres southeast of Rosslare in County Wexford.

The largest magnitude event recorded in the Irish Sea in recent times was a 2.5 magnitude earthquake, which occurred on December 15, 2019.

A 5.4 magnitude earthquake in July 1984 was the largest ever recorded on mainland Britain—specifically, on the Llŷn Peninsula in North Wales. It was felt throughout Ireland’s east coast, as well as in Wales and England.

It released approximately 1.25 petajoules of energy, compared to just 251,000 million joules released by Saturday’s quake, meaning the tremor would not have been felt locally.