M4.5 earthquake 71 km E of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 71 km E of Hihifo, Tonga on Wed, Aug 14, 1974, 10:14 AM GMT-11 (21:14 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.0 80 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.5 (mb, body-wave), light
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 1974-08-14 21:14:37 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 15.924° S, 173.127° W
- Region
- Tonga
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Magnitude estimates
Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.
| Mag. | Scale | Computed by | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4.5 | mb, body-wave | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Preferred · Reviewed |
| 5.04 | Mw, moment | ISC-GEM global catalog | Final · ±0.3 |
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
- 19
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 4 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.080 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 19036 days ago · 13 km deep · 71 km away
- 4.762 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 19018 days ago · 124 km deep · 40 km away
- 4.797 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 19004 days ago · 33 km deep · 99 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp00007mg (also filed as iscgem738775). Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 4:08 PM UTC.