M5.4 earthquake 90 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 5.4 earthquake struck 90 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga on Sat, May 13, 1978, 5:41 AM GMT-11 (16:41 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M6.2 80 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 (ms), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-05-13 16:41:12 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 15.244° S, 173.387° 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
- 77
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.4 and up: 3 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.1122 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17655 days ago · 38 km deep · 52 km away
- 6.280 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17643 days ago · 33 km deep · 19 km away
- 4.435 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17637 days ago · 33 km deep · 94 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000uhk (also filed as gcmtb051378b, gcmt19780513164112, iscgem682215). Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 10:38 PM UTC.