M4.6 earthquake 95 km WNW of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 95 km WNW of Hihifo, Tonga on Sun, Sep 29, 1985, 8:27 AM GMT-11 (19:27 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.1 75 km W 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
- 4.6 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1985-09-29 19:27:17 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 15.667° S, 174.638° 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 1.6 and up: 2 in the 60 days after this one and 3 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.175 km W of Hihifo, Tonga · 14945 days ago · 33 km deep · 27 km away
- 4.694 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga · 14943 days ago · 295 km deep · 99 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0002k9n. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 9:58 AM UTC.