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World Seismicity Database

Publisher
British Geological Survey (BGS)
Updated
13 August 2026
Topic
Not set
Licence
Not set

Summary

This dataset contains parametric data (epicentre, magnitude, depth, etc) for over one million earthquakes worldwide. The dataset has been compiled gradually over a period of thirty years from original third-party catalogues, and parameters have not been revised by BGS, although erroneous entries have been flagged where found. The dataset is kept in two versions: the complete "master" version, in which all entries for any single earthquake from contributing catalogue are preserved, and the "pruned" version, in which each earthquake is represented by a single entry, selected from the contributing sources according to a hierarchy of preferences. The pruned version, which is intended to be free from duplicate entries for the same event, provides a starting point for studies of seismicity and seismic hazard anywhere in the world.

Data links

Link Format Preview Updated
BGS Earthquake Seismology HTML 13/8/2026

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Additional information

Source Metadata
XML, HTML
Date added
13 August 2026
Harvest GUID
9df8df52-d7a3-37a8-e044-0003ba9b0d98
Extent (Latitude)
90.0000° to -90.0000°
Extent (Longitude)
-180.0000° to 180.0000°
Dataset reference date (creation)
1975
Frequency of update
monthly
Access constraints
The copyright of materials derived from the British Geological Survey's work is vested in the Natural Environment Research Council [NERC]. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a retrieval system of any nature, without the prior permission of the copyright holder, via the BGS Intellectual Property Rights Manager. Use by customers of information provided by the BGS, is at the customer's own risk. In view of the disparate sources of information at BGS's disposal, including such material donated to BGS, that BGS accepts in good faith as being accurate, the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) gives no warranty, expressed or implied, as to the quality or accuracy of the information supplied, or to the information's suitability for any use. NERC/BGS accepts no liability whatever in respect of loss, damage, injury or other occurence however caused.
Responsible party
British Geological Survey (distributor, pointOfContact, custodian, originator)
ISO 19139 resource type
dataset
Metadata language
eng