M5.0 earthquake 97 km N of Neiafu, Tonga
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 97 km N of Neiafu, Tonga on Fri, Oct 16, 1981, 2:07 PM GMT+13 (01:07 UTC), 76 km (47 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.2 140 km NNE of Neiafu, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 5.0 (mb), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 1981-10-16 01:07:17 UTC
- Depth
- 76.0 km (47.2 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 17.769° S, 174.040° 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 2.0 and up: 2 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 usp0001gfz. Read Tue, Sep 29, 2026, 6:49 PM UTC.