M4.7 earthquake 105 km ENE of Lakatoro, Vanuatu
A magnitude 4.7 earthquake struck 105 km ENE of Lakatoro, Vanuatu on Mon, Dec 18, 1978, 10:23 PM GMT+11 (11:23 UTC), 263 km (163 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.8 44 km E of Luganville, Vanuatu. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.7 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-12-18 11:23:39 UTC
- Depth
- 263.0 km (163.4 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 15.822° S, 168.356° 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.
- Stations used
- 12
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.7 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 3.932 km ENE of Lakatoro, Vanuatu · 17444 days ago · 45 km deep · 73 km away
- 4.646 km NE of Norsup, Vanuatu · 17435 days ago · 147 km deep · 74 km away
- 4.669 km E of Lakatoro, Vanuatu · 17419 days ago · 231 km deep · 39 km away
- 4.755 km ENE of Lakatoro, Vanuatu · 17391 days ago · 162 km deep · 49 km away
- 5.844 km E of Luganville, Vanuatu · 17387 days ago · 123 km deep · 89 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayVanuatu earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000xz7. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 10:06 AM UTC.