M5.1 earthquake 58 km N of Isangel, Vanuatu
A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck 58 km N of Isangel, Vanuatu on Thu, Dec 15, 1977, 9:46 AM GMT+11 (22:46 UTC), 252 km (157 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.3 65 km N of Isangel, Vanuatu. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 5.1 (mb), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 1977-12-14 22:46:58 UTC
- Depth
- 252.0 km (156.6 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 19.019° S, 169.374° E
- Region
- Vanuatu
- 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
- 18
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.1 and up: 2 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.186 km N of Isangel, Vanuatu · 17808 days ago · 248 km deep · 30 km away
- 5.365 km N of Isangel, Vanuatu · 17795 days ago · 249 km deep · 8 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayVanuatu earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000s2m. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 8:54 AM UTC.