Tonga earthquakes

M5.0 earthquake 278 km WNW of Haveluloto, Tonga

A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 278 km WNW of Haveluloto, Tonga on Mon, Jan 14, 1985, 10:20 AM GMT+13 (21:20 UTC), 531 km (330 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.3 269 km WNW of Haveluloto, 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
5.0 (mb), moderate
Local time
UTC
1985-01-13 21:20:01 UTC
Depth
531.0 km (329.9 mi), deep
Epicenter
20.675° S, 177.838° 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.

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.0 and up: 6 in the 60 days after this one and 3 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 4.9Fiji region · 15219 days ago · 401 km deep · 88 km away
  2. 5.0Fiji region · 15215 days ago · 549 km deep · 64 km away
  3. 4.6Fiji region · 15208 days ago · 591 km deep · 76 km away
  4. 4.5Fiji region · 15207 days ago · 559 km deep · 66 km away
  5. 5.0Fiji region · 15205 days ago · 560 km deep · 62 km away
  6. 5.3269 km WNW of Haveluloto, Tonga · 15204 days ago · 554 km deep · 10 km away

Before

  1. 5.0Fiji region · 15234 days ago · 581 km deep · 87 km away
  2. 5.1Fiji region · 15234 days ago · 574 km deep · 85 km away
  3. 4.2Fiji region · 15248 days ago · 557 km deep · 63 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0002b0e. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 7:58 AM UTC.