Tonga earthquakes

M4.9 earthquake 209 km NE of Neiafu, Tonga

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck 209 km NE of Neiafu, Tonga on Fri, Apr 8, 1977, 1:43 PM GMT-11 (00:43 UTC), 35 km (22 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.1 194 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.

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The earthquake

Magnitude
4.9 (mb), light
Local time
UTC
1977-04-09 00:43:19 UTC
Depth
35.0 km (21.7 mi), shallow
Epicenter
17.430° S, 172.467° 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
11

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.9 and up: 9 in the 60 days after this one and 5 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 4.7174 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18061 days ago · 33 km deep · 92 km away
  2. 4.9176 km NE of Neiafu, Tonga · 18059 days ago · 33 km deep · 36 km away
  3. 4.3150 km SSE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18059 days ago · 33 km deep · 71 km away
  4. 5.1194 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18056 days ago · 33 km deep · 25 km away
  5. 5.1152 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18050 days ago · 33 km deep · 96 km away
  6. 5.3175 km SSE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18042 days ago · 33 km deep · 58 km away
  7. 5.2221 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18037 days ago · 33 km deep · 48 km away
  8. 5.0171 km ENE of Neiafu, Tonga · 18035 days ago · 33 km deep · 85 km away
  9. 5.0164 km ENE of Neiafu, Tonga · 18035 days ago · 33 km deep · 63 km away

Before

  1. 4.9173 km NE of Neiafu, Tonga · 18065 days ago · 33 km deep · 45 km away
  2. 5.1178 km NE of Neiafu, Tonga · 18065 days ago · 33 km deep · 33 km away
  3. 4.9207 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18068 days ago · 68 km deep · 15 km away
  4. 4.8226 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18070 days ago · 33 km deep · 81 km away
  5. 7.6199 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 18070 days ago · 33 km deep · 91 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000nac. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 10:03 AM UTC.