M4.3 earthquake 49 km SE of Pangai, Tonga
A magnitude 4.3 earthquake struck 49 km SE of Pangai, Tonga on Sun, Dec 23, 1973, 8:28 PM GMT+13 (07:28 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M4.6 30 km SSE of Pangai, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.3 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1973-12-23 07:28:19 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 20.176° S, 174.076° W
- Region
- Tonga
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Depth from
- OPERATOR_ASSIGNED
- Stations used
- 11
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 3 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.
After
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp00004mh. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 6:32 AM UTC.