Vanuatu earthquakes

M5.5 earthquake 88 km NW of Port-Olry, Vanuatu

A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck 88 km NW of Port-Olry, Vanuatu on Sat, Dec 29, 1973, 2:08 AM GMT+11 (15:08 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M7.2 20 km WSW of Port-Olry, Vanuatu. This one was a foreshock.

Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

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The earthquake

Magnitude: 5.5 (mb), moderate
Local time: Sat, Dec 29, 1973, 2:08 AM GMT+11
UTC: 1973-12-28 15:08:12 UTC
Depth: 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 14.494° S, 166.472° E
Region: Vanuatu
Strongest shaking: IV, light 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: IV, light shaking
Peak ground acceleration: 5.0% of gravity
Peak ground velocity: 1.2 cm/s
Map: Automatic

USGS ShakeMap: estimated shaking intensity around the epicenter — Estimated shaking intensity. Map: USGS ShakeMap.

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: 38

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.5 and up: 69 in the 60 days after this one and 5 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 69.

Before

Earthquakes today Vanuatu earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp00004pc (also filed as iscgem753903). Read Tue, Sep 29, 2026, 11:55 AM UTC.