M3.8 earthquake 131 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 3.8 earthquake struck 131 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga on Thu, Sep 26, 1985, 6:17 AM GMT-11 (17:17 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M4.7 131 km E 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
- 3.8 (mb), minor
- Local time
- UTC
- 1985-09-26 17:17:22 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 16.321° S, 172.624° 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 1.5 and up: 4 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.7131 km E of Hihifo, Tonga · 14969 days ago · 33 km deep · 41 km away
- 4.767 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga · 14969 days ago · 33 km deep · 96 km away
- 5.456 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 14930 days ago · 33 km deep · 77 km away
- 4.678 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 14930 days ago · 50 km deep · 53 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0002k5j. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 5:27 PM UTC.