M4.8 earthquake 148 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 148 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga on Tue, Sep 3, 1985, 12:44 AM GMT-12 (12:44 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.9 90 km S 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
- 4.8 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1985-09-03 12:44:09 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 17.394° S, 174.477° 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
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.8 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.990 km S of Hihifo, Tonga · 14982 days ago · 81 km deep · 94 km away
- 4.690 km N of Neiafu, Tonga · 14979 days ago · 127 km deep · 79 km away
- 4.395 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga · 14972 days ago · 33 km deep · 56 km away
- 4.694 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga · 14943 days ago · 295 km deep · 95 km away
- 5.1109 km SSW of Hihifo, Tonga · 14938 days ago · 33 km deep · 67 km away
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0002jcz. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 8:26 PM UTC.