M5.0 earthquake 137 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 137 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga on Sat, Apr 2, 1988, 3:56 AM GMT-11 (14:56 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.1 84 km NE 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
- 5.0 (mb, body-wave), moderate
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 1988-04-02 14:56:58 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 15.278° S, 172.723° 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 2.0 and up: 4 in the 60 days after this one and 3 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.184 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 14062 days ago · 33 km deep · 57 km away
- 4.8104 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 14058 days ago · 81 km deep · 46 km away
- 5.1109 km SW of Gataivai, Samoa · 14049 days ago · 33 km deep · 91 km away
- 4.7Samoa Islands region · 14044 days ago · 33 km deep · 49 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0003ekd. Read Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 7:22 PM UTC.