M4.9 earthquake 44 km WNW of Sola, Vanuatu
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck 44 km WNW of Sola, Vanuatu on Sat, May 13, 1978, 1:04 AM GMT+11 (14:04 UTC), 214 km (133 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M6.7 63 km NNE of Port-Olry, Vanuatu. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.9 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-05-12 14:04:24 UTC
- Depth
- 214.0 km (133.0 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 13.674° S, 167.193° 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
- 29
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.9 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 6.763 km NNE of Port-Olry, Vanuatu · 17671 days ago · 160 km deep · 95 km away
- 5.049 km SSW of Sola, Vanuatu · 17667 days ago · 207 km deep · 70 km away
- 5.4106 km NW of Sola, Vanuatu · 17640 days ago · 193 km deep · 69 km away
- 5.287 km WSW of Sola, Vanuatu · 17612 days ago · 47 km deep · 64 km away
- 4.9Vanuatu · 17612 days ago · 35 km deep · 80 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayVanuatu earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000uh2. Read Tue, Sep 29, 2026, 11:19 AM UTC.