Tonga earthquakes

M4.9 earthquake 170 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck 170 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga on Fri, Dec 26, 1975, 7:22 AM GMT-11 (18:22 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.7 123 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.

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Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude
4.9 (mb, body-wave), light
Magnitude from
USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time
UTC
1975-12-26 18:22:45 UTC
Depth
33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter
16.570° S, 172.337° 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
10

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.9 and up: 23 in the 60 days after this one and 4 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 5.1234 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18542 days ago · 33 km deep · 65 km away
  2. 5.1114 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18542 days ago · 38 km deep · 65 km away
  3. 4.8103 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18542 days ago · 39 km deep · 87 km away
  4. 5.0103 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18541 days ago · 33 km deep · 88 km away
  5. 5.0167 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18541 days ago · 33 km deep · 3 km away
  6. 5.078 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18541 days ago · 33 km deep · 96 km away
  7. 4.9123 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18541 days ago · 31 km deep · 64 km away
  8. 4.9117 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18539 days ago · 35 km deep · 79 km away
  9. 4.6164 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18539 days ago · 33 km deep · 6 km away
  10. 4.8134 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18539 days ago · 33 km deep · 47 km away
  11. 5.7123 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18536 days ago · 33 km deep · 55 km away
  12. 5.3Samoa Islands region · 18536 days ago · 33 km deep · 62 km away
  13. 5.4129 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18536 days ago · 33 km deep · 42 km away
  14. 4.8111 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18535 days ago · 33 km deep · 58 km away
  15. 5.3175 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18521 days ago · 33 km deep · 15 km away
  16. 5.3157 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18518 days ago · 33 km deep · 39 km away
  17. 5.5138 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18511 days ago · 36 km deep · 72 km away
  18. 4.9184 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18510 days ago · 44 km deep · 15 km away
  19. 4.4168 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18504 days ago · 104 km deep · 36 km away
  20. 5.2166 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18502 days ago · 33 km deep · 39 km away
  21. 5.3135 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18502 days ago · 33 km deep · 35 km away
  22. 5.0215 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18501 days ago · 33 km deep · 49 km away
  23. 4.7181 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18501 days ago · 33 km deep · 12 km away

Before

  1. 5.492 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18542 days ago · 33 km deep · 86 km away
  2. 4.9171 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18542 days ago · 33 km deep · 34 km away
  3. 4.8170 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18542 days ago · 33 km deep · 14 km away
  4. 7.8146 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18542 days ago · 33 km deep · 37 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000e2z. Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 9:39 AM UTC.