Tonga earthquakes

M5.5 earthquake 138 km E of Hihifo, Tonga

A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck 138 km E of Hihifo, Tonga on Mon, Jan 26, 1976, 10:46 AM GMT-11 (21:46 UTC), 36 km (22 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.9 148 km SSW of Lotofag?, 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
5.5 (ms), moderate
Local time
UTC
1976-01-26 21:46:13 UTC
Depth
36.0 km (22.4 mi), shallow
Epicenter
15.948° S, 172.507° 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.

Stations used
52

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.5 and up: 7 in the 60 days after this one and 13 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 4.9184 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18501 days ago · 44 km deep · 85 km away
  2. 4.4168 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18495 days ago · 104 km deep · 44 km away
  3. 5.3135 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18493 days ago · 33 km deep · 61 km away
  4. 4.7181 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18492 days ago · 33 km deep · 77 km away
  5. 5.9148 km SSW of Lotofag?, Samoa · 18486 days ago · 33 km deep · 81 km away
  6. 4.7155 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18469 days ago · 33 km deep · 47 km away
  7. 4.2186 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18457 days ago · 33 km deep · 68 km away

Before

  1. 5.3157 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18509 days ago · 33 km deep · 95 km away
  2. 5.3175 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18512 days ago · 33 km deep · 86 km away
  3. 5.3164 km SSW of Matavai, Samoa · 18526 days ago · 28 km deep · 74 km away
  4. 4.8111 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18527 days ago · 33 km deep · 54 km away
  5. 5.4129 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18527 days ago · 33 km deep · 65 km away
  6. 5.3Samoa Islands region · 18527 days ago · 33 km deep · 67 km away
  7. 5.7123 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18527 days ago · 33 km deep · 80 km away
  8. 4.5171 km SSW of Lotofag?, Samoa · 18529 days ago · 33 km deep · 58 km away
  9. 5.2137 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18529 days ago · 69 km deep · 30 km away
  10. 4.8134 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18530 days ago · 33 km deep · 30 km away
  11. 4.6164 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18530 days ago · 33 km deep · 66 km away
  12. 4.9117 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 18530 days ago · 35 km deep · 21 km away
  13. 5.5146 km S of Matavai, Samoa · 18531 days ago · 33 km deep · 94 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000erz (also filed as iscgem719725). Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 11:00 AM UTC.