M4.8 earthquake 124 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 124 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga on Sun, Feb 15, 1981, 8:03 AM GMT-11 (19:03 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.4 76 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga. 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), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1981-02-15 19:03:43 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 15.172° S, 172.965° 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.
- Depth from
- OPERATOR_ASSIGNED
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.8 and up: 4 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.476 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 16649 days ago · 33 km deep · 48 km away
- 4.8118 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 16610 days ago · 33 km deep · 33 km away
- 4.9142 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 16610 days ago · 33 km deep · 26 km away
- 4.9139 km SSW of Lotofag?, Samoa · 16610 days ago · 33 km deep · 59 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0001c72. Read Sun, Sep 27, 2026, 2:30 AM UTC.