New Insights from Artificial Intelligence on Santorini's Earthquake Swarm

Sat Nov 22 2025 06:35:10 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

Scientists unveil the triggers of the massive earthquake swarm near Santorini, revealing the role of molten rock and machine learning in understanding seismic activity.

Researchers have attributed the over 25,000 earthquakes near Santorini to the movement of molten rock through an underground channel. This discovery, enabled by the integration of physics and artificial intelligence, has implications for future volcanic eruption forecasting, as the team's findings suggest that the seismic activity was indicative of magma's horizontal movement beneath the Earth's crust.

The swarm of tens of thousands of earthquakes near the Greek island of Santorini earlier this year was triggered by molten rock pumping through an underground channel over three months, scientists have discovered.

They used physics and artificial intelligence to work out exactly what caused the more than 25,000 earthquakes, which travelled about 20km (12 miles) horizontally through the Earth's crust.

They used each of the tremors as virtual sensors, then employed artificial intelligence to analyze patterns associated with them.

One of the lead researchers, Dr. Stephen Hicks from UCL, stated that combining physics and machine learning in this manner could help to forecast volcanic eruptions.

What happened in Santorini?

The seismic activity began beneath the islands of Santorini, Amorgos, and Anafi in January 2025, causing tens of thousands of earthquakes—many exceeding a magnitude of 5.0. Many felt the tremors, prompting some tourists to flee and locals to worry that the nearby underwater volcano Kolumbo might erupt, reminiscent of the devastating magnitude 7.7 quake that struck the region in 1956.

Scientists published their findings in *Science*, creating a 3D map of the Earth around Santorini and tracking the evolving seismic patterns of each tremor, which resulted in a detailed model of the event.

The research revealed that the earthquake swarm was driven by horizontal magma movement from Santorini and the Kolumbo volcano through a 30km channel located more than 10km beneath the seafloor between Santorini and Anydros, with the volume of magma moving equating to 200,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools.

Lead author Anthony Lomax noted that the tremors acted like instruments deep within the Earth, providing crucial data about the seismic movements.

Does this mean the Santorini unrest is over?

Currently, the researchers believe the unrest appears to be over. Dr. Hicks noted, The magma remained quite deep—more than 8km in the crust. . Historically, volcanoes can undergo prolonged phases of unrest that extend for many years, and while the current seismic activity has dissipated, it’s crucial to monitor for future developments.

Utilizing artificial intelligence combined with foundational physics may revolutionize how scientists monitor, understand, and foresee volcanic activities, ultimately creating a leading-edge forecasting tool. Dr. Hicks explained that whenever clusters of earthquakes are detected, that data would aid in determining the most likely cause of such movements.