M5.2 earthquake 86 km E of ‘Ohonua, Tonga
A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 86 km E of ‘Ohonua, Tonga on Sun, Mar 1, 1981, 2:09 AM GMT+13 (13:09 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.7 76 km ESE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 5.2 (mb), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 1981-02-28 13:09:44 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 21.197° S, 174.125° 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 2.2 and up: 3 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.6Tonga · 16622 days ago · 72 km deep · 27 km away
- 5.776 km ESE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 16618 days ago · 43 km deep · 46 km away
- 5.189 km S of Pangai, Tonga · 16611 days ago · 33 km deep · 66 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0001cfb. Read Thu, Sep 24, 2026, 4:01 AM UTC.