M5.1 earthquake 129 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga
A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck 129 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga on Tue, Jan 28, 1986, 11:19 AM GMT-12 (23:19 UTC), 126 km (78 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.8 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
- 1986-01-28 23:19:00 UTC
- Depth
- 126.0 km (78.3 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 17.526° S, 174.318° 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
- CONSTRAINED_BY_DEPTH_PHASES
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.1 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.7166 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga · 14846 days ago · 33 km deep · 41 km away
- 4.8156 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga · 14827 days ago · 125 km deep · 46 km away
- 4.843 km N of Neiafu, Tonga · 14816 days ago · 33 km deep · 93 km away
- 4.2137 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga · 14807 days ago · 110 km deep · 66 km away
- 5.8Tonga · 14787 days ago · 33 km deep · 36 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0002qhm. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 8:06 AM UTC.