M5.1 earthquake 206 km N of Sola, Vanuatu
A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck 206 km N of Sola, Vanuatu on Tue, Oct 30, 1979, 5:37 PM GMT+11 (06:37 UTC), 297 km (185 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.3 170 km NW of Sola, Vanuatu. 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
- 1979-10-30 06:37:05 UTC
- Depth
- 297.0 km (184.5 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 12.032° S, 167.258° 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
- 98
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.1 and up: 2 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.
After
Earthquakes todayVanuatu earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp00013sd (also filed as gcmtb103079b, gcmt19791030063705, iscgem658065). Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 12:34 PM UTC.