Tonga earthquakes

M4.8 earthquake 222 km SW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga

A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 222 km SW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga on Tue, Dec 21, 1982, 12:52 AM GMT+13 (11:52 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M6.3 265 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.

Nuku‘alofa forecastMore in Tonga

Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

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The earthquake

Magnitude
4.8 (mb), light
Local time
UTC
1982-12-20 11:52:58 UTC
Depth
33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter
22.985° S, 176.180° 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 1.8 and up: 9 in the 60 days after this one and 10 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 4.8271 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15982 days ago · 33 km deep · 69 km away
  2. 6.3265 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15982 days ago · 33 km deep · 67 km away
  3. 5.8278 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15982 days ago · 33 km deep · 94 km away
  4. 5.1258 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15982 days ago · 33 km deep · 89 km away
  5. 5.1177 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15979 days ago · 33 km deep · 59 km away
  6. 5.5259 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15979 days ago · 33 km deep · 99 km away
  7. 5.6268 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15974 days ago · 33 km deep · 98 km away
  8. 5.0235 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15972 days ago · 33 km deep · 89 km away
  9. 4.7265 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15956 days ago · 33 km deep · 73 km away

Before

  1. 5.4257 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15982 days ago · 33 km deep · 92 km away
  2. 6.3284 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15983 days ago · 32 km deep · 85 km away
  3. 5.0284 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15983 days ago · 33 km deep · 90 km away
  4. 5.2239 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15983 days ago · 33 km deep · 18 km away
  5. 5.7252 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15997 days ago · 50 km deep · 53 km away
  6. 5.4251 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 15997 days ago · 70 km deep · 66 km away
  7. 5.3Tonga region · 16000 days ago · 69 km deep · 83 km away
  8. 4.9228 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 16005 days ago · 33 km deep · 36 km away
  9. 4.8269 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 16009 days ago · 33 km deep · 71 km away
  10. 4.9234 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 16009 days ago · 33 km deep · 14 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0001rka. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 4:22 PM UTC.