M5.4 earthquake 81 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 5.4 earthquake struck 81 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga on Wed, Mar 1, 1978, 9:33 AM GMT-11 (20:33 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M6.2 79 km NNE 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
- 5.4 (mb, body-wave), moderate
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-03-01 20:33:39 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 15.435° S, 173.263° W
- Region
- Tonga
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Magnitude estimates
Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.
| Mag. | Scale | Computed by | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.4 | mb, body-wave | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Preferred · Reviewed |
| 5.55 | Mw, moment | ISC-GEM global catalog | Final · ±0.2 |
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
- 79
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.4 and up: 2 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 6.279 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17744 days ago · 33 km deep · 32 km away
- 4.490 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17691 days ago · 166 km deep · 12 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000t6k (also filed as iscgem684474). Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 6:07 PM UTC.