Ethiopian earthquakes and volcanic eruptions: earth scientist explains the link
Ethiopia’s Afar and Oromia regions have been hit by several earthquakes and tremors since the beginning of 2025. The strongest, with a magnitude of 5.7, struck on 4 January. The US Geological Survey and the German Research Centre for Geosciences reported that its epicentre was 142km east of the capital, Addis Ababa, which is in the Oromia region. It came just a day after a quake with a magnitude of 5.5 hit the same area. Two more quakes were reported over the weekend of 11 January.
The Ethiopian Disaster Risk Management Council is relocating around 60,000 residents in the two regions to temporary shelters because of the risk of further earthquakes.
The earthquakes have also sparked fears of volcanic eruptions because they are happening near two active volcanoes, Fentale and Dofen. The Conversation Africa asked volcano researcher Amdemichael Tadesse to explain what’s happening below the earth’s surface.
How common is it for quakes in Ethiopia to trigger volcanic eruptions?
Earthquakes and volcanic activity are both common in Ethiopia. The country is located in a geologically active region, the East African Rift System . But it’s rare for earthquakes to directly trigger volcanic eruptions in Ethiopia.
The current episode of earthquake activity is being caused by magmatic activity in Oromia and Afar region. Magma (molten rock) is intruding into the subsurface beneath two volcanoes, Fentale and Dofen, which are geographically close to each other.
Read more: Tracking the hazards -- and benefits -- of volcanoes in East Africa
Ethiopia has around 50 active volcanoes. Most are in the Ethiopian Rift, the northern segment of the East African Rift System. An active volcano has magma stored deep within its crust that could potentially erupt in the future. There’s evidence of past eruptions at many of these active volcanoes. Some date back hundreds of years . In contrast, a dormant volcano has not erupted for thousands of years and shows no immediate signs of reactivation or imminent eruption.
Why have the earthquakes sparked fears of volcanic eruptions?
Volcanoes and earthquakes are both natural phenomena driven by the dynamic processes that shape Earth’s interior and surface.
The outermost layer of Earth, the lithosphere , is composed of solid rock and is broken into large sections called tectonic plates. These plates fit together like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. They move slowly on the more fluid layer beneath them, the asthenosphere . Convection currents in Earth’s mantle drive the movement of tectonic plates.
Tectonic plates interact at their boundaries in three primary ways: they move apart, collide, or slide past one another. These interactions produce geological activity, including earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Most volcanoes and earthquakes occur along these plate boundaries, where the stress and movement of the plates cause the lithosphere to fracture.
