M5.3 earthquake 145 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck 145 km SE of Hihifo, Tonga on Fri, Apr 3, 1987, 10:51 PM GMT-11 (09:51 UTC), 34 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.4 131 km SSE 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
- 5.3 (Mw, moment), moderate
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 1987-04-04 09:51:38 UTC
- Depth
- 33.6 km (20.9 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 16.772° S, 172.725° W
- Region
- Tonga
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Magnitude estimates
Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.
| Mag. | Scale | Computed by | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.3 | Mw, moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Preferred · Reviewed |
| 5.31 | Mw, moment | ISC-GEM global catalog | Final · ±0.1 |
| 5.3 | Mwc, centroid moment | Global CMT project | Preliminary |
What happened
The USGS’s account of the effects of this earthquake.
CENTROID, MOMENT TENSOR (HRV) Data Used: GDSN L.P.B.: 15S, 29C Centroid Location: Origin Time 09:51:40.9 0.9 Lat 17.00S 0.09 Lon 172.24W 0.09 Dep 39.6 8.5 Half-duration 1.8 Moment Tensor; Scale 10**16 Nm Mrr=1.24 0.47 Mtt=5.80 0.68 Mff=-7.04 0.70 Mrt=-2.97 0.90 Mrf=8.27 1.39 Mtf=-3.67 0.59 Principal Axes: (T) Val=10.59 Plg=37 Azm=212 (N) Val=1.71 Plg=39 Azm=338 (P) Val=-12.30 Plg=30 Azm=96 Best Double Couple:Mo=1.1*10**17 NP1:Strike=241 Dip=39 Slip=174 NP2:Strike=335 Dip=86 Slip=51
From the USGS event page for usp00033wv. U.S. Geological Survey text and figures are in the public domain.
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
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.3 and up: 1 in the 60 days after this one and 4 in the 30 days before it.
After
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp00033wv (also filed as gcmtb040487b, gcmt19870404095137, iscgem468446). Read Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 3:37 AM UTC.