The United States Geological Survey
recorded a Magnitude 3.7 Earthquake at a depth of 10 km, roughly 5 km
to the northeast of the town of Moshi in the Kilimanjaro Region of northern
Tanzania, slightly after 11.50 am local time (slightly after 8.50 am GMT) on Thursday 7 February 2019. There are no reports of any damage or casualties associated with this event (nor would any be expected with an event of this size), but people have reported feeling it locally.
The approximate location of the 7 February 2019 Kilimanjaro Earthquake. USGS.
Western Tanzania lies within the the of the Great Rift Valley, which is
slowly splitting the African Plate in two along a line from the Red Sea
through Ethiopia, and which includes the great lakes and volcanoes of
east-central Africa. This has the potential to open into a new ocean
over the next few tens of millions of years, splitting Africa into two
new, smaller, continents; Nubia to the west and Somalia to the east.
The Earthquake occurred about 30 km to the south of Mount Kilimanjaro, a 5149 m high volcano associated with the African Rift System that forms the highest point in Africa. Seismic activity beneath volcanoes can be significant, as they are often caused by the arrival of fresh magma, which may indicate that a volcano is about to undergo an eruptive episode. However, this event is unlikely to be a prelude to any activity on Kilimanjaro, as the volcano is dormant, having not erupted for about 100 000 years, and is unlikely to do so in the future without a significant amount of warning.
Mount Kilimanjaro, seen from Moshi. Muhammad Mahdi Karim/Wikipedia.
Witness
accounts of Earthquakes can help geologists to understand these events,
and the structures that cause them. The international non-profit
organisation Earthquake Report is interested in hearing from people who may have felt this event; if you felt this quake then you can report it to Earthquake Report here.
See also...
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