Tonga earthquakes

M4.7 earthquake 120 km W of Pangai, Tonga

A magnitude 4.7 earthquake struck 120 km W of Pangai, Tonga on Tue, Jun 6, 1978, 11:52 PM GMT+13 (10:52 UTC), 267 km (166 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.1 57 km NW of Nuku‘alofa, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.

Nuku‘alofa forecastMore in Tonga

Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

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The earthquake

Magnitude
4.7 (mb), light
Local time
UTC
1978-06-06 10:52:59 UTC
Depth
267.0 km (165.9 mi), intermediate-depth
Epicenter
20.022° S, 175.488° 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.

Stations used
11

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.7 and up: 1 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000uxf. Read Sun, Sep 27, 2026, 1:51 PM UTC.