M4.9 earthquake 155 km W of Neiafu, Tonga
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck 155 km W of Neiafu, Tonga on Fri, Jul 17, 1981, 4:05 PM GMT+13 (03:05 UTC), 241 km (150 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.2 203 km WNW of Pangai, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.9 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1981-07-17 03:05:24 UTC
- Depth
- 241.0 km (149.8 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 18.435° S, 175.437° 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
- CONSTRAINED_BY_DEPTH_PHASES
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.9 and up: 1 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.
After
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0001erw. Read Mon, Sep 28, 2026, 2:02 PM UTC.