M4.6 earthquake 71 km SSW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 71 km SSW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu on Thu, Jan 21, 1988, 9:31 PM GMT+12 (09:31 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.4 60 km W of Port-Vila, Vanuatu. 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
- 1988-01-21 09:31:01 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 18.338° S, 168.056° E
- Region
- Vanuatu
- 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 1.6 and up: 7 in the 60 days after this one and 3 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.460 km W of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 14115 days ago · 10 km deep · 83 km away
- 5.450 km WNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 14115 days ago · 23 km deep · 89 km away
- 4.922 km WNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 14115 days ago · 49 km deep · 78 km away
- 5.179 km S of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 14105 days ago · 39 km deep · 31 km away
- 4.9105 km S of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 14091 days ago · 151 km deep · 39 km away
- 5.444 km S of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 14087 days ago · 48 km deep · 30 km away
- 4.657 km SW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 14087 days ago · 38 km deep · 38 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayVanuatu earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0003c8a. Read Tue, Sep 29, 2026, 5:57 PM UTC.