Vanuatu earthquakes

M5.9 earthquake 102 km WNW of Sola, Vanuatu

A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 102 km WNW of Sola, Vanuatu on Sat, Apr 25, 1981, 4:30 PM GMT+11 (05:30 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.

Map

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The earthquake

Magnitude: 5.9 (ms), moderate
Local time: Sat, Apr 25, 1981, 4:30 PM GMT+11
UTC: 1981-04-25 05:30:14 UTC
Depth: 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 13.530° S, 166.674° E
Region: Vanuatu
Strongest shaking: V, moderate shaking
Tsunami flag: No
Status: Reviewed by a seismologist

Shaking

The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.

Strongest estimated: V, moderate shaking
Peak ground acceleration: 8.1% of gravity
Peak ground velocity: 1.4 cm/s
Map: Automatic

USGS ShakeMap: estimated shaking intensity around the epicenter — Estimated shaking intensity. Map: USGS ShakeMap.

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.5 and up: 23 in the 60 days after this one and 3 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

Earthquakes today Vanuatu earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0001dbb (also filed as gcmtb042581b, gcmtb042581a, iscgem628695). Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 7:39 PM UTC.