Samoa earthquakes

M4.5 earthquake 171 km SSW of Lotofag?, Samoa

A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 171 km SSW of Lotofag?, Samoa on Mon, Dec 29, 1975, 6:03 PM GMT-11 (05:03 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.3 164 km SSW of Matavai, Samoa. 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
4.5 (mb), light
Local time
UTC
1975-12-30 05:03:17 UTC
Depth
33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter
15.476° S, 172.269° W
Region
Samoa
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
15

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 15 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 5.3164 km SSW of Matavai, Samoa · 18527 days ago · 28 km deep · 27 km away
  2. 5.0135 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18512 days ago · 33 km deep · 99 km away
  3. 5.5138 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18502 days ago · 36 km deep · 58 km away
  4. 4.4168 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18496 days ago · 104 km deep · 87 km away
  5. 5.9148 km SSW of Lotofag?, Samoa · 18486 days ago · 33 km deep · 24 km away

Before

  1. 5.2137 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18530 days ago · 69 km deep · 37 km away
  2. 4.8134 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18530 days ago · 33 km deep · 88 km away
  3. 4.9117 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18530 days ago · 35 km deep · 70 km away
  4. 5.0132 km SSW of Matavai, Samoa · 18532 days ago · 18 km deep · 48 km away
  5. 5.6127 km SSW of Matavai, Samoa · 18532 days ago · 33 km deep · 51 km away
  6. 5.5146 km S of Matavai, Samoa · 18532 days ago · 33 km deep · 42 km away
  7. 4.9123 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18532 days ago · 31 km deep · 78 km away
  8. 5.0103 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18533 days ago · 33 km deep · 79 km away
  9. 4.2124 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18533 days ago · 33 km deep · 88 km away
  10. 4.8103 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18533 days ago · 39 km deep · 79 km away
  11. 5.1114 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18533 days ago · 38 km deep · 89 km away
  12. 5.2144 km SSW of Lotofag?, Samoa · 18533 days ago · 33 km deep · 32 km away
  13. 5.492 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18533 days ago · 33 km deep · 96 km away
  14. 4.9171 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18533 days ago · 33 km deep · 90 km away
  15. 7.8146 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18533 days ago · 33 km deep · 90 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000e5q. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 3:59 PM UTC.