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In the early hours of Wednesday, a massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake rattled Russia's far eastern coast near Kamchatka Peninsula. The quake's epicentre was about 119 kilometres off the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, sending strong tremors through the region and triggering sizeable waves along the Pacific coastline.

Yet, despite the magnitude of the quake, Moscow didn't feel a thing.

How Did Moscow Escape The Shaking?

The recent earthquake was among the most powerful ever recorded in the region. However, Moscow experienced no impact. The reason lies in geography. Russia's capital is located about 6,800 kilometres from the earthquake's epicentre and rests on the Eat European Platform, a tectonically stable zone.

This ancient geological structure is far removed from the boundaries where tectonic plates collide. As a result, seismic waves lose their intensity before they can reach this part of the country. Moscow’s position on such a this piece of the Earth’s crust makes it one of the safest cities globally when it comes to earthquake risk.

Why Kamchatka Is A Hotspot For Earthquakes

Unlike Moscow, the Kamchatka Peninsula is one of the most seismically volatile regions in the world. It lies on a major tectonic boundary where the Pacific Plate is diving beneath the Okhotsk, part of the North American Plate system.

This subduction zone is part of the infamous Pacific "Ring of Fire", a region notorious for frequent and intense seismic activity, including both earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Over time, immense pressure builds along this boundary, and when it’s released, it causes massive earthquakes and occasionally tsunamis. Kamchatka is also home to several active volcanoes, making it a natural disaster hotspot.

One Of The Strongest Quakes Recorded In History

Kamchatka isn’t new to intense tremors. In fact, eleven earthquakes of magnitude 8.0 or higher have shaken this region in just the past two centuries. The quake that struck on July 29, 2025, adds to this long list of seismic events. It is now tied for the sixth strongest ever recorded, matching the devastating 2010 quake in Biobio, Chile, and the 1906 disaster in Ecuador’s Esmeraldas province. Interestingly, the fifth strongest quake on record also struck the Kamchatka Peninsula in 1952, an event now known as the world’s first recorded magnitude 9 earthquake.