Vanuatu earthquakes

M5.2 earthquake 51 km SSW of Sola, Vanuatu

A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 51 km SSW of Sola, Vanuatu on Thu, Mar 27, 1986, 1:26 AM GMT+11 (14:26 UTC), 202 km (125 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M6.5 78 km W of Sola, Vanuatu. This one was a foreshock.

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The earthquake

Magnitude
5.2 (mw), moderate
Local time
UTC
1986-03-26 14:26:19 UTC
Depth
201.8 km (125.4 mi), intermediate-depth
Epicenter
14.265° S, 167.296° E
Region
Vanuatu
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 2.2 and up: 9 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 6.578 km W of Sola, Vanuatu · 14772 days ago · 29 km deep · 63 km away
  2. 4.823 km NE of Port-Olry, Vanuatu · 14769 days ago · 169 km deep · 73 km away
  3. 5.267 km NW of Sola, Vanuatu · 14757 days ago · 33 km deep · 90 km away
  4. 5.112 km NNW of Port-Olry, Vanuatu · 14757 days ago · 100 km deep · 82 km away
  5. 4.231 km ENE of Port-Olry, Vanuatu · 14754 days ago · 130 km deep · 74 km away
  6. 5.046 km WNW of Sola, Vanuatu · 14751 days ago · 214 km deep · 55 km away
  7. 4.846 km NNE of Port-Olry, Vanuatu · 14747 days ago · 174 km deep · 43 km away
  8. 5.226 km NE of Port-Olry, Vanuatu · 14741 days ago · 141 km deep · 69 km away
  9. 4.253 km ENE of Port-Olry, Vanuatu · 14731 days ago · 162 km deep · 78 km away

Before

  1. 3.913 km WNW of Port-Olry, Vanuatu · 14794 days ago · 33 km deep · 88 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0002saa (also filed as gcmtb032686b, gcmt19860326142621, iscgem501966). Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 5:16 PM UTC.