M5.9 earthquake 44 km NNE of Port-Olry, Vanuatu
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 44 km NNE of Port-Olry, Vanuatu on Fri, May 29, 1981, 3:10 AM GMT+11 (16:10 UTC), 125 km (78 mi) below the surface.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 5.9 (mb, body-wave), moderate
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 1981-05-28 16:10:07 UTC
- Depth
- 125.0 km (77.7 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 14.692° S, 167.280° E
- Region
- Vanuatu
- Strongest shaking
- IV, light shaking
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Magnitude estimates
Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.
| Mag. | Scale | Computed by | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.9 | mb, body-wave | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Preferred · Reviewed · 47 stations |
| 6.17 | Mw, moment | ISC-GEM global catalog | Final · ±0.1 |
| 6.2 | Mwc, centroid moment | Global CMT project | Preliminary |
Shaking
The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.
- Strongest estimated
- IV, light shaking
- Peak ground acceleration
- 2.5% of gravity
- Peak ground velocity
- 0.1 cm/s
- Map
- Automatic
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 2.9 and up: 4 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.816 km NNW of Port-Olry, Vanuatu · 16562 days ago · 130 km deep · 36 km away
- 5.24 km NNE of Port-Olry, Vanuatu · 16538 days ago · 125 km deep · 41 km away
- 4.847 km SW of Sola, Vanuatu · 16538 days ago · 189 km deep · 63 km away
- 5.834 km ENE of Luganville, Vanuatu · 16508 days ago · 143 km deep · 85 km away
Earthquakes todayVanuatu earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0001dx3 (also filed as gcmtb052881a, gcmt19810528161007, iscgem627441). Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 10:14 PM UTC.