Country profile · USGS ComCat
Earthquakes in Botswana
Botswana has catalogued 13 M4+ earthquakes since 2005 (ranked 131st of 187 countries), with the strongest reaching magnitude M6.5.
Botswana ranks 131st of 187 countries by catalogued seismic activity - a country with limited but non-zero seismic activity, averaging about 1 M4+ events a year alongside 1 significant M6+ earthquakes since 1900. The M6+ record here is a single event, so one quake sets every figure on this page.
- 13
- M4+ events (since 2005)
- 1
- Major M6+ (since 1900)
- M6.5
- Strongest
- ~1
- M4+ per year
The verdict
Botswana is below the global median in catalogued seismic activity, with 13 M4+ earthquakes logged since 2005 and 1 major M6+ events since 1900, the strongest reaching magnitude 6.5.
- 2017
- busiest year (1 major events)
- 29 km
- average recorded event depth
- 100%
- of events are shallow (<70 km, the most damaging kind)
Average catalogued magnitude is 4.8 - most events are moderate M4-5 tremors that are felt but rarely cause damage. On the M4+ activity ladder French Southern Territories sits immediately above at 14 events and Angola sits immediately below at 12.
ComCat magnitude tape
Event tape BOTSWANA · Botswana M4+ · 131st/187
Botswana · 13 M4+ · max M6.5 · 1 M6+
- YOY 13
- BAND 131st/187
- STRIP M6.5
- BOOK 1
- RANK near French Southern Territories
- MAX 100% shallow
Stamps derive from this country's USGS ComCat row (M4+ book, rank, peak magnitude, M6+ record, ladder neighbour, depth/peak year), not a hazard forecast. PlainQuake is informational only - not professional advice and not a substitute for official USGS guidance. See our disclaimer. Verify with USGS ComCat → · Read with methodology → · How earthquakes are measured → · Reading earthquake data → · All country catalog rows → · Countries ranked →
Observed impact record
What ComCat observed after earthquakes in Botswana
USGS recorded Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) for 1 events in this catalogued record; their average observed intensity was MMI 7.7. These are only events with an observation, not an estimate of future shaking or a safety rating.
- MMI observations
- 1
- Average observed MMI
- 7.7
- PAGER alerts / tsunami flags
- 1 / 0
Source: USGS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat) GeoJSON impact fields. Missing MMI, alert, and tsunami values remain unreported rather than being treated as zero.
Where Botswana sits in the catalog
Rank 131st of 187 tracked countries (30th percentile by M4+ count since 2005). On the M4+ activity ladder French Southern Territories sits immediately above at 14 events and Angola sits immediately below at 12.
- French Southern Territories - next more active (14 M4+)
- Angola - next less active (12 M4+)
Botswana's M4+ count vs. every tracked country
Total catalogued M4+ events since 2005, USGS ComCat
13 Top 70% higher than 30% of 187 countries
Each bar is a 500-wide band; taller bars hold more countries. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source USGS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat) · 2005-present
1 of 13 catalogued M4+ events since 2005 reached M6.0 or higher.
Magnitude distribution of major events
Breakdown of the 1 significant (M6+) earthquakes on record for Botswana.
M6.0-6.9
1
100.0%
Depth of major earthquakes
Hypocentral depth of the 1 M6+ events, shallow quakes shake the surface hardest. Average depth: 29 km.
Shallow (<70 km)
1
100.0% of events
Intermediate (70–300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Deep (>300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Strongest earthquakes in Botswana
The 1 most powerful events on record (USGS, since 1900).
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.5 | 132 km WSW of Moijabana, Botswana | 29.0 km | Apr 3, 2017 |
Significant earthquake record (1 events)
Every catalogued magnitude-6.0-and-above earthquake in Botswana since 1900, most recent first.
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.5 | 132 km WSW of Moijabana, Botswana | 29.0 km | Apr 3, 2017 |
Other countries in this catalog sample
A Botswana-keyed shuffle of the full 186-country roster, not the six nearest by count.
Saint Kitts and Nevis
23 M4+ events · strongest M4.8
Austria
11 M4+ events · strongest M4.2
Senegal
1 M4+ events · strongest M4.5
India
4,099 M4+ events · strongest M7.5
Bermuda
6 M4+ events · strongest M4.6
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
6 M4+ events · strongest M4.8
Peak-magnitude sample from the same roster
A second Botswana-keyed shuffle of countries with a recorded max magnitude.
Showing 6 of 186 countries with a recorded max magnitude.
According to the US Geological Survey Earthquake Hazards Program, PlainQuake's figures are rendered directly from 317,293 recorded M4+ earthquakes and 14,444 significant M6+ events (USGS ComCat, 2005-present) -- no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-08-26.