The ongoing seismic activity that is hitting Malta may continue over the next few weeks as the frequency and magnitude of the tremors decrease, geophysicist Pauline Galea said on Thursday.

The tremors were triggered by regional tectonic forces south of Malta, she said. These have been known to generate seismic activity in the past and the subsequent number of tremors are not uncommon in such sequences.

“The fault systems around the Maltese islands often demonstrate phases of activity, alternating with quiet periods. The present phase is a normal active phase,” Galea said.

In Sicily, the tremors were not felt with the same intensity as in Malta as the current activity is restricted to a particular fault system which is not connected to Sicily’s fault system.

Wednesday's seismic activity continued into Thursday with several tremors felt across the country, the latest recorded activity on the University of Malta’s seismic monitoring registering a 3.9 magnitude tremor at 11.48 am.

The current activity does not form part of the typical “mainshock – aftershock” making it hard to determine how long the activity will last, Galea said, adding that the activity is expected to decrease in number and intensity over time.