Santorini: Earthquakes will continue for a long time, perhaps until Easter

The strongest tremors from Enceladus were at 5 on the Richter scale, with scientists unable to rule out the possibility of a stronger earthquake, of the order of 6 on the Richter scale.

The Oceanographic vessel "Aegean" to arrive in Santorini today
The Oceanographic "Aegean" is expected to arrive in the sea area between Santorini and Amorgos today, with a large scientific team, which will analyze more data from the geological and geophysical material in the area. The oceanographic sailed from the port of Piraeus on Wednesday afternoon (12/2) with a large research team.

The oceanographic surveys in the area between Santorini and Amorgos will include:

1) Detailed bathymetric and morphological mapping of the seabed with the aim of identifying phenomena or structures related to the activity of submarine faults, the possible occurrence of submarine landslides and the assessment of the risk of submarine slopes to landslides.

2) Recording of high-resolution seismic sections of the seabed substrate with the aim of detailed recording of the upper part of the faults that may have been activated during the current seismic excitation, as well as possible landslide phenomena.
3) Recording of additional high-penetration seismic sections (multichannel reflection seismics), with the aim of collecting more data on the geometry of the faults at greater depths (> 1-2 km) below the seabed.
4) Measurements of oceanographic parameters (temperature, turbidity, salinity) and concentrations of radioactive elements (e.g. radon) in the water column and near the bottom, with the aim of identifying possible increased release of fluids (gases) from the submarine faults in the area.

Athens Univ: More than 15,300 earthquakes from 26/1 to 10/2 in Santorini-Amorgos
According to today's announcement by the Interdisciplinary Committee for Risk and Crisis Management of the NKUA, from the start of seismic activity in the Santorini-Amorgos zone on January 26 until February 10, 2025, the Seismology Laboratory of NKUA has detected and located a total of more than 15,300 earthquakes using machine learning methods, with strict criteria to ensure the quality of the results, of which more than 13,200 with magnitudes of M³1.0.

On February 10, more than 1,200 earthquakes were recorded, with approximately 240 having a magnitude of M³2.5, 13 earthquakes with M³4.0, and 4 earthquakes with M³4.5, with the largest earthquake having a magnitude of 5.2.

Papanikolaou: We will have seismic activity at least until Easter
The professor of Tectonic Dynamics and Geology, Dimitris Papanikolaou, estimates that earthquakes in Santorini will continue until Easter, while at the same time he throws his arrows at Mr. Ghana, emphasizing that volcanic earthquakes have stopped for a month and the remaining positions are unnecessary.

Specifically, Mr. Papanikolaou told Action 24: “The 4 centimeters that the Caldera has risen is how much it has risen from the summer until a month ago. Let’s not confuse this phenomenon that is recent and finished with what is happening. It did not happen here in 2011, when the elevation in the Caldera was greater.”

Karastathis: We have not ruled out the possibility of a larger earthquake
“We have not ruled out the possibility of a larger earthquake,” said yesterday the director of the Geodynamic Institute, Vasilis Karastathis, who, commenting on the continuous seismic vibrations, referred to their frequency of occurrence, saying that after Friday, milder seismicity has been observed. “This does not mean that the magnitudes are smaller. As a series, it behaves in the same order and maintains magnitudes close to 5 on the Richter scale,” noted Mr. Karastathis. As he emphasized to ERT, “a meaningful assessment can be made when the de-escalation begins.”

Papazachos: “It cannot be ruled out that a stronger earthquake will occur - The activity will last a long time
In his statements, Costas Papazachos said: “Experience is that these sequences last a long time, they last at least a few weeks and in some cases they last months. And this is the difficulty we are facing at the moment. Also, it cannot be ruled out that a stronger earthquake will occur at any time, which will break some pieces that have not been made. The good thing in this case is - because we are at sea quite far from land areas - that at distances such as Santorini, Anafi, Ios, Amorgos, in general the effects will be limited".

At the same time, Mr. Papazachos said that he understands and respects a person who is afraid of earthquakes, and that is why he said that everyone should know that the seismic activity will last for weeks, maybe even months, and therefore with this in mind, he must himself, just as he decided to leave, decide whether to return.