M5.1 earthquake 73 km WNW of Tobelo, Indonesia
A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck 73 km WNW of Tobelo, Indonesia on Fri, Dec 8, 1978, 1:48 AM GMT+9 (16:48 UTC), 116 km (72 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.3 141 km NNW of Ternate, Indonesia. 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), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-12-07 16:48:45 UTC
- Depth
- 116.0 km (72.1 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 1.943° N, 127.386° E
- Region
- Indonesia
- 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
- 53
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.1 and up: 3 in the 60 days after this one and 3 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.076 km N of Ternate, Indonesia · 17452 days ago · 155 km deep · 53 km away
- 5.075 km W of Tobelo, Indonesia · 17433 days ago · 139 km deep · 38 km away
- 5.3141 km NNW of Ternate, Indonesia · 17422 days ago · 65 km deep · 77 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayIndonesia earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000xtg. Read Tue, Sep 29, 2026, 8:41 AM UTC.