M6.6 earthquake Fiji region
A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck in the Fiji region on Thu, Mar 10, 1988, 11:25 PM GMT+13 (10:25 UTC), 623 km (387 mi) below the surface.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 6.6 (Mw, moment), strong
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 1988-03-10 10:25:05 UTC
- Depth
- 623.0 km (387.1 mi), deep
- Epicenter
- 20.917° S, 178.645° W
- Region
- Fiji
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.6 | Mw, moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Preferred · Reviewed |
| 6.6 | Mw, moment | ISC-GEM global catalog | Final · ±0.1 |
| 6.6 | Mwc, centroid moment | Global CMT project | Preliminary |
| 5.99 | Me, energy | Choy, USGS energy magnitude | Reviewed |
What happened
The USGS’s account of the effects of this earthquake.
FAULT PLANE SOLUTION: P-Waves NP1:Strike=72 Dip=85 Slip=-90 NP2:Strike=252 Dip=5 Slip=-90 Principal Axes: (T) Plg=40 Azm=162 (P) Plg=50 Azm=342 Comment: The focal mechanism is poorly controlled and corresponds to normal faulting. The preferred fault plane is not determined. RADIATED ENERGY No. of sta: 6 Focal mech. M Energy 2.4+0.3*10**13 Nm MOMENT TENSOR SOLUTION Dep 613 No. of sta: 15 Moment Tensor; Scale 10**18 Nm Mrr=-2.20 Mtt=3.47 Mff=-1.27 Mrt=-7.92 Mrf=-2.02 Mtf=-2.84 Principal axes: (T) Val=9.19 Plg=34 Azm=188 (N) Val=-0.03 Plg=23 Azm=82 (P) Val=-9.16 Plg=48 Azm=325 Best Double Couple:Mo=9.2*10**18 NP1:Strike=332 Dip=24 Slip=-19 NP2:Strike=79 Dip=82 Slip=-113 CENTROID, MOMENT TENSOR (HRV) Data Used: GDSN L.P.B.: 15S, 39C M.W.: 11S, 23C Centroid Location: Origin Time 10:25:13.3 0.2 Lat 21.02S 0.02 Lon 178.44W 0.02 Dep 635.9 1.1 Half-duration 7.5 Moment Tensor; Scale 10**18 Nm Mrr=-1.51 0.09 Mtt=4.14 0.12 Mff=-2.63 0.13 Mrt=-7.46 0.11 Mrf=-3.56 0.12 Mtf=-4.03 0.12 Principal Axes: (T) Val=9.45 Plg=32 Azm=188 (N) Val=0.82 Plg=33 Azm=75 (P) Val=-10.27 Plg=41 Azm=311 Best Double Couple:Mo=9.9*10**18 NP1:Strike=334 Dip=33 Slip=-9 NP2:Strike=72 Dip=85 Slip=-123
From the USGS event page for usp0003dte. 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 3.6 and up: 9 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.4Fiji region · 14073 days ago · 627 km deep · 24 km away
- 4.4Fiji region · 14057 days ago · 557 km deep · 57 km away
- 4.6Fiji region · 14053 days ago · 528 km deep · 76 km away
- 5.5Fiji region · 14052 days ago · 619 km deep · 94 km away
- 4.8Fiji region · 14046 days ago · 526 km deep · 48 km away
- 4.6Fiji region · 14038 days ago · 596 km deep · 27 km away
- 4.8Fiji region · 14033 days ago · 593 km deep · 6 km away
- 5.0Fiji region · 14029 days ago · 580 km deep · 99 km away
- 4.6Fiji region · 14026 days ago · 491 km deep · 38 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayFiji earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0003dte (also filed as choy19880310102505, gcmtc031088c, gcmt19880310102504, iscgem442742). Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 1:04 PM UTC.