M4.7 earthquake 99 km ENE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga
A magnitude 4.7 earthquake struck 99 km ENE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga on Sat, May 23, 1987, 4:38 AM GMT+13 (15:38 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.3 69 km E of ‘Ohonua, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.7 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1987-05-22 15:38:25 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 20.968° S, 174.073° 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 1.7 and up: 3 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.481 km NE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 14344 days ago · 120 km deep · 25 km away
- 4.9102 km ENE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 14342 days ago · 33 km deep · 3 km away
- 5.369 km E of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 14338 days ago · 36 km deep · 43 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp000356d. Read Mon, Sep 28, 2026, 11:50 AM UTC.