M4.6 earthquake 159 km W of Pangai, Tonga
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 159 km W of Pangai, Tonga on Sun, Mar 22, 1987, 5:33 AM GMT+13 (16:33 UTC), 244 km (152 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.3 133 km WNW of Pangai, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.6 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1987-03-21 16:33:40 UTC
- Depth
- 244.1 km (151.7 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 19.644° S, 175.864° 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
- FROM_LOCATION
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.6 and up: 1 in the 60 days after this one and 1 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 usp00033gw. Read Tue, Sep 29, 2026, 7:28 AM UTC.