M6.0 earthquake 42 km NW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu
A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck 42 km NW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu on Sat, Oct 6, 1962, 7:03 PM GMT+11 (08:03 UTC), 35 km (22 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M6.2 61 km NNE of Port-Vila, Vanuatu. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 6.0 (Mw, moment), strong
- Magnitude from
- ISC-GEM global catalog
- Local time
- UTC
- 1962-10-06 08:03:35 UTC
- Depth
- 35.0 km (21.7 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 17.469° S, 168.028° E
- Region
- Vanuatu
- Strongest shaking
- V, moderate shaking
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Shaking
The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.
- Strongest estimated
- V, moderate shaking
- Peak ground acceleration
- 7.2% of gravity
- Peak ground velocity
- 1.5 cm/s
- Map
- Automatic
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.20
- Depth from
- From location
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 3.0 and up: 2 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 6.043 km WNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 23371 days ago · 35 km deep · 10 km away
- 6.261 km NNE of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 23317 days ago · 35 km deep · 56 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayVanuatu earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event iscgem875458. Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 4:15 PM UTC.