M5.2 earthquake 186 km NW of Sola, Vanuatu
A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 186 km NW of Sola, Vanuatu on Tue, Oct 16, 1973, 11:37 PM GMT+11 (12:37 UTC), 35 km (22 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.3 181 km NW of Sola, Vanuatu. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 5.2 (mb), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 1973-10-16 12:37:14 UTC
- Depth
- 35.0 km (21.7 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 12.611° S, 166.420° E
- Region
- Vanuatu
- 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.
- Stations used
- 58
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.2 and up: 3 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.9186 km NNW of Sola, Vanuatu · 19298 days ago · 218 km deep · 74 km away
- 5.3181 km NW of Sola, Vanuatu · 19298 days ago · 124 km deep · 22 km away
- 4.7168 km S of Lata, Solomon Islands · 19294 days ago · 31 km deep · 56 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayVanuatu earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp00003us. Read Tue, Sep 29, 2026, 11:28 AM UTC.