The strongest earthquake to strike Iceland since 2000, a 6.1 Mw doublet event caused injuries and property damage but no fatalities.
Key Facts
- Composite magnitude
- 6.1 Mw
- First quake magnitude
- 5.9 Mw
- Second quake magnitude
- 5.8 Mw
- Distance from Reykjavík
- 45 km east-southeast
- Human fatalities
- 0
- Time of occurrence
- 15:46 UTC, 29 May 2008
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Southwestern Iceland lies on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a tectonically active zone where the North American and Eurasian plates diverge. Accumulated stress along this seismic belt periodically releases in significant earthquakes, as had previously occurred in the summer of 2000 in the same region.
On 29 May 2008 at 15:46 UTC, a doublet earthquake struck southwestern Iceland between the towns of Hveragerði and Selfoss, approximately 45 kilometers east-southeast of Reykjavík. The two main shocks measured 5.9 Mw and 5.8 Mw, yielding a combined magnitude of 6.1 Mw, making it the strongest Icelandic earthquake since 2000.
The earthquake produced no human fatalities, though injuries were reported among the population and a number of sheep were killed. Property damage occurred in the affected towns near the epicenter. The event highlighted the ongoing seismic hazard in southwestern Iceland and the region's vulnerability to doublet earthquake sequences.
Human Cost
Each dot represents approximately 10,000 deaths. Total estimated: 0 (earthquake)