M5.1 earthquake 141 km SE of Pangai, Tonga
A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck 141 km SE of Pangai, Tonga on Mon, Sep 16, 1985, 8:08 PM GMT+13 (07:08 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.4 102 km ENE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 5.1 (mb), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 1985-09-16 07:08:24 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 20.805° S, 173.493° 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 2.1 and up: 3 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.
After
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0002jtq. Read Tue, Sep 29, 2026, 3:21 AM UTC.