M5.0 earthquake 144 km WNW of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 144 km WNW of Hihifo, Tonga on Thu, Dec 9, 1976, 6:47 PM GMT-11 (05:47 UTC), 304 km (189 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.2 80 km NNW 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
- 5.0 (mb), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 1976-12-10 05:47:15 UTC
- Depth
- 304.0 km (188.9 mi), deep
- Epicenter
- 15.325° S, 174.977° 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
- 40
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.0 and up: 1 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.
After
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000kpy. Read Sun, Sep 27, 2026, 11:21 PM UTC.