Earthquake swarm under Lake Taupo

A swarm of earthquakes occurred over the weekend under southern Lake Taupo.

From late evening on Saturday 28 May until early Monday 30 May, a small swarm of earthquakes occurred in the southern part of Lake Taupo between Kuratau and Motuoapa.

Twenty-seven earthquakes were recorded and they were all located at shallow depths (< 10 km).

The largest earthquake had a magnitude of 2.4, but they were mostly between magnitudes 1.7 and 2.2.

Small swarms like this often occur within the central part of New Zealand and are likely to be associated with occasional movement on small faults in the southern part of the lake.

We believe they are due to the normal extensional processes (stretching and thinning of crust) that occur in the Taupo Volcanic Zone.

There is no evidence that the earthquakes are related to a change of volcanic activity.