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Frequency of Earthquakes Worldwide

Descriptor Magnitude Annual average
Great 8 or higher 11
Major 7–7.9 172
Strong 6–6.9 1342
Moderate 5–5.9 1,3192
Light 4–4.9 c. 13,000
Minor 3–3.9 c. 130,000
Very minor 2–2.9 c. 1,300,000
1. Based on observations since 1900. 2. Based on observations since 1990. NOTE: The NEIC estimates that several million earthquakes occur in the world each year. Many go undetected because they hit remote areas or have very small magnitudes.
Source: National Earthquake Information Center, U.S. Geological Survey.

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