M5.1 earthquake 98 km S of Lakatoro, Vanuatu
A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck 98 km S of Lakatoro, Vanuatu on Tue, May 9, 1978, 6:05 AM GMT+11 (19:05 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.3 99 km S of Lakatoro, 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, body-wave), moderate
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-05-08 19:05:39 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 16.978° S, 167.590° 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.
- Depth from
- OPERATOR_ASSIGNED
- Stations used
- 36
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.1 and up: 4 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.6103 km S of Lakatoro, Vanuatu · 17673 days ago · 33 km deep · 10 km away
- 5.399 km S of Lakatoro, Vanuatu · 17673 days ago · 15 km deep · 11 km away
- 5.217 km ESE of Lakatoro, Vanuatu · 17663 days ago · 47 km deep · 93 km away
- 4.997 km ESE of Lakatoro, Vanuatu · 17633 days ago · 80 km deep · 78 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayVanuatu earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000uf0. Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 5:45 AM UTC.