Too many strong quakes in the last 30 days? What does it mean? Here's what the data says

Social media is shaking over “too many earthquakes” this month. But is it really unusual?

Twitter is buzzing, Reddit’s rumbling, and TikTok’s tilting — people are freaking out over the reported 396 earthquakes of Magnitude 5.0 or greater (M5+) recorded worldwide in the past 30 days.

“Is the Earth breaking up with us?” one user joked.

But before we all start prepping bunkers and learning Morse code, let’s look at what the data actually says.

According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the planet experiences an average of 1,300 to 1,500 magnitude 5+ earthquakes per year.

That breaks down to about 110 to 125 per month. So yes — 396 in 30 days is notably higher than normal.

But here's the twist: this isn’t the first time this has happened.

Seismologists point out that global earthquake activity is clustered, not evenly spaced out.

You can have a relatively quiet month followed by an explosive one — and it’s still within normal geophysical variation.

For example, in April 2015, following the Nepal quake, aftershocks and regional activity pushed the global count over 400 for that month.

Ditto for December 2004, post the Sumatra quake and tsunami.

Plus, most of these recent quakes have happened along tectonically active zones like the Pacific “Ring of Fire” — not in totally random places.

That’s expected.

Earth’s plates are constantly moving, grinding, and occasionally snapping — releasing pent-up energy as earthquakes.

What’s changed is not necessarily Earth’s behaviour — it’s our awareness.

So, should we worry? Not yet, say experts.

A spike is worth noting, but not panicking over.

If activity continues to rise beyond historical limits — say, 500+ M5 quakes in a month — then scientists would start to investigate potential underlying causes, like unusual plate shifts, volcanic upticks, or deeper mantle movements.

Until then?

The Earth’s just doing its thing. Maybe a bit louder than usual — but still within the bounds of geophysical normal.

Yes, the "record" 396 M5+ earthquakes in 30 days is high — but not unprecedented. The Earth isn’t mad at us.

Probably.

Posts on X and sources like VolcanoDiscovery note a magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula on July 30, 2025, which was the largest in the past decade. 

Large earthquakes can trigger aftershocks, potentially inflating the number of Magnitude 5+ events in a short period. 

The claim of an “unusual” number of Magnitude 5+ quakes aligns with reports of heightened activity, particularly following this event.

The exact number, however, lacks direct corroboration from primary sources like USGS.

A post on X claims 396 magnitude 5+ earthquakes set a “record” for a 30-day period; another suggests over 300 such quakes are “unprecedented”. 

These posts generally reflect public perception of suggesting unusual seismic activity.

The USGS does not confirm a specific record but notes that seismic activity can vary due to regional tectonic events, like those in the “Pacific Ring of Fire”, where most earthquakes occur. 

The high number could be linked to such a cluster but requires further data to confirm as a record.

A reported 396 magnitude 5+ earthquakes in 30 days is significantly higher than the average of ~159 for a similar period, indicating an unusual spike, likely driven by a major event like the Kamchatka quake and its aftershocks. 

However, without direct USGS confirmation of the exact figure, it’s not definitive that this is a record.

There have been worldwide 52,421 quakes in the past month, broken down into the following (as per Volcano Discovery):