Tonga earthquakes

M6.3 earthquake 265 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga

A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck 265 km SSW of ‘Ohonua, Tonga on Tue, Dec 21, 1982, 6:46 AM GMT+13 (17:46 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.

Nuku‘alofa forecast More in Tonga

Map

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

Open the live map with earthquakes

The earthquake

Magnitude: 6.3 (ms), strong
Local time: Tue, Dec 21, 1982, 6:46 AM GMT+13
UTC: 1982-12-20 17:46:08 UTC
Depth: 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 23.545° S, 175.939° 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.

Nuku‘alofa, TongaPopulation 22,400. Forecast278 kmSSW

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.5 and up: 22 in the 60 days after this one and 33 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

Earthquakes today Tonga earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0001rkp (also filed as gcmtb122082e, gcmt19821220174608, iscgem587150). Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 8:02 AM UTC.