M5.0 earthquake 135 km SW of Gataivai, Samoa
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 135 km SW of Gataivai, Samoa on Mon, Sep 27, 1982, 12:51 AM GMT-11 (11:51 UTC), 26 km (16 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.2 129 km NE of Hihifo, 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 (ms), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 1982-09-27 11:51:07 UTC
- Depth
- 26.0 km (16.2 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 14.646° S, 173.264° W
- Region
- Samoa
- 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: 7 in the 60 days after this one and 4 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.2129 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 16064 days ago · 63 km deep · 45 km away
- 5.6129 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 16063 days ago · 33 km deep · 38 km away
- 4.5103 km N of Hihifo, Tonga · 16063 days ago · 33 km deep · 60 km away
- 4.469 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 16056 days ago · 33 km deep · 100 km away
- 5.066 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 16038 days ago · 43 km deep · 97 km away
- 4.275 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 16020 days ago · 33 km deep · 80 km away
- 5.175 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 16019 days ago · 33 km deep · 91 km away
Before
Earthquakes todaySamoa earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0001pvd. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 4:18 PM UTC.