Tonga earthquakes

M5.1 earthquake 97 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck 97 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga on Mon, Sep 12, 1977, 4:59 PM GMT-11 (03:59 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.5 93 km E of Hihifo, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude
5.1 (mb), moderate
Local time
UTC
1977-09-13 03:59:44 UTC
Depth
33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter
15.473° S, 173.033° 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
51

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.1 and up: 7 in the 60 days after this one and 6 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 5.1132 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17906 days ago · 4 km deep · 35 km away
  2. 4.8158 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 17900 days ago · 33 km deep · 84 km away
  3. 4.468 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17899 days ago · 33 km deep · 30 km away
  4. 5.082 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 17889 days ago · 33 km deep · 54 km away
  5. 5.593 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 17889 days ago · 33 km deep · 64 km away
  6. 5.984 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17875 days ago · 33 km deep · 28 km away
  7. 5.380 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17856 days ago · 30 km deep · 32 km away

Before

  1. 4.885 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17906 days ago · 33 km deep · 47 km away
  2. 6.077 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17907 days ago · 33 km deep · 28 km away
  3. 5.681 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17908 days ago · 33 km deep · 29 km away
  4. 5.688 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17908 days ago · 33 km deep · 22 km away
  5. 5.494 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17916 days ago · 18 km deep · 30 km away
  6. 5.1135 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17929 days ago · 33 km deep · 91 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000qmf. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 12:10 PM UTC.