Tonga earthquakes

M7.3 earthquake 201 km ENE of Neiafu, Tonga

A magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck 201 km ENE of Neiafu, Tonga on Mon, Oct 5, 1987, 5:19 PM GMT-11 (04:19 UTC), 16 km (10 mi) below the surface.

Map

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The earthquake

Magnitude: 7.3 (mw), major
Local time: Mon, Oct 5, 1987, 5:19 PM GMT-11
UTC: 1987-10-06 04:19:06 UTC
Depth: 16.0 km (9.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 17.940° S, 172.225° W
Region: Tonga
Strongest shaking: IV, light shaking
Tsunami flag: No
Status: Reviewed by a seismologist

Shaking

The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.

Strongest estimated: IV, light shaking
Peak ground acceleration: 2.2% of gravity
Peak ground velocity: 1.4 cm/s
Map: Automatic

USGS ShakeMap: estimated shaking intensity around the epicenter — Estimated shaking intensity. Map: USGS ShakeMap.

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.5 and up: 11 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.

After

Earthquakes today Tonga earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp000390n (also filed as choy19871006041906, gcmtc100687b, gcmt19871006041908, iscgem454760). Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 10:23 AM UTC.