M4.9 earthquake 204 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck 204 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga on Fri, Jul 7, 1978, 12:26 AM GMT-11 (11:26 UTC), 41 km (25 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.4 144 km SE 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
- 4.9 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-07-07 11:26:50 UTC
- Depth
- 41.0 km (25.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 17.309° S, 172.490° 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
- CONSTRAINED_BY_DEPTH_PHASES
- Stations used
- 28
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.9 and up: 1 in the 60 days after this one and 5 in the 30 days before it.
After
Before
- 5.0173 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17620 days ago · 29 km deep · 42 km away
- 5.1206 km NE of Neiafu, Tonga · 17622 days ago · 33 km deep · 16 km away
- 5.4184 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17627 days ago · 33 km deep · 24 km away
- 5.0241 km ENE of Neiafu, Tonga · 17634 days ago · 33 km deep · 57 km away
- 7.0206 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga · 17637 days ago · 33 km deep · 34 km away
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000vf9. Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 3:08 PM UTC.