The United States Geological Survey reported a Magnitude 4.8 Earthquake at a depth of 9.2 km beneath the Ionian Sea between the island of Zakynthos and the Peloponnesian (Greek) mainland, slightly after 6.10 am local time (sightly after 4.10 am GMT) on Saturday 11 January 2013. There are no reports of any damage or injuries associated with this event.
The approximate location of the 11 January 2014 Zakynthos Earthquake. Google Maps.
Southern Greece is located on the Aegean Sea Plate, a small tectonic plate caught between the African Plate to the south, the Anatolian Plate to the east and the Eurasian Plate to the northwest. The Anatolian Plate is being pushed to the west by the northward movement of the Arabian Plate to the east, pushing the Aegean Plate south and west into collision with the northward moving African Plate. Part of the African Plate is being subducted beneath the Aegean Plate along the Hellenic Trench, Which runs to the south of the Greek Islands from Cyprus to Crete then northwest under the Ionian sea parallel to the Peloponnesian Coast is not a smooth process, as the plates frequently stick together then break apart once the pressure has built up sufficiently, leading to (fairly frequent) Earthquakes.
See also Magnitude 6.4 Earthquake off the west coast of Crete, Magnitude 4.7 Earthquake in northern Greece, Two Earthquakes shake Central Greece, Magnitude 4.5 Earthquake under the Ionian Sea and Magnitude 4.4 Earthquake of the south coast of Crete.
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