M4.8 earthquake 51 km WNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 51 km WNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu on Fri, Sep 1, 1978, 4:59 PM GMT+11 (05:59 UTC), 29 km (18 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.0 50 km WNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.8 (mb, body-wave), light
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-09-01 05:59:07 UTC
- Depth
- 29.0 km (18.0 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 17.490° S, 167.899° 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
- 46
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.8 and up: 3 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.050 km WNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 17554 days ago · 27 km deep · 2 km away
- 5.052 km NW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 17535 days ago · 33 km deep · 4 km away
- 4.230 km NE of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 17522 days ago · 119 km deep · 69 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayVanuatu earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000waa. Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 4:13 PM UTC.