Perthshire loch records UK’s most powerful earthquake in 2025

Scotland recorded the UK’s most powerful onshore earthquakes in 2025, according to the latest data.

They happened hours apart on 20 October near Loch Lyon in Perth and Kinross, when a 3.7-magnitude tremor was shortly followed by a 3.6-magnitude one.

The British Geological Survey (BGS) said 198 people “felt” the earthquake, some up to 60km (37.2 miles) away.

They were among 309 earthquakes recorded across the UK up to 18 December, BGS seismologists said.

One local resident described the Loch Lyon earthquake as feeling “like an underground subway” under their house, while another said “the house shook and all the windows rattled”.

Perthshire and the western Highlands were among the most seismically active regions over the last 12 months, BGS figures revealed.

The data showed 34 earthquakes happened near Loch Lyon between October and December.

Dr Brian Baptie, a seismologist at BGS, said it was not surprising the region was the UK’s earthquake capital, due to its position on the Highland Boundary Fault – which stretches from Helensburgh, Argyll and Bute, to Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire.

He said: “The west of Scotland is one of the more active parts of the UK.

“Some of this activity can be attributed to well-known geological faults like the Great Glen Fault and the Highland Boundary Fault.

“It is a reminder that small earthquakes happen all the time and it remains of critical importance that they are studied to help us understand the possible impact of the rare large earthquakes on major energy and infrastructure projects around the country.”

The third largest onshore earthquake was one of 3.2 magnitude at Silverdale in Lancashire on 3 December, which sparked nearly 700 “felt reports”.

A magnitude-four event in the UK and surrounding areas is typically recorded every three to four years, and a magnitude-five event happens every few decades.

The most recent one occurred in 2008 in Lincolnshire.

Magnitude-six earthquakes happen every few hundred years, the BGS said.