M5.2 earthquake 124 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 124 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga on Sat, Mar 7, 1987, 10:48 AM GMT-11 (21:48 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.4 132 km ESE 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
- 5.2 (mw), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 1987-03-07 21:48:46 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 16.225° S, 172.664° 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 2.2 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.867 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 14451 days ago · 33 km deep · 95 km away
- 5.1126 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga · 14448 days ago · 33 km deep · 63 km away
- 5.4132 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 14444 days ago · 33 km deep · 13 km away
- 4.9119 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga · 14442 days ago · 33 km deep · 90 km away
- 5.3145 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga · 14424 days ago · 34 km deep · 61 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0003330 (also filed as gcmtb030787d, gcmt19870307214846, iscgem471497). Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 7:17 PM UTC.