Vanuatu earthquakes

M6.1 earthquake 86 km SSW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu

A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck 86 km SSW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu on Sat, Oct 27, 2001, 10:05 AM GMT+11 (23:05 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.

Port-Vila forecast More in Vanuatu

Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

Open the live map with earthquakes

The earthquake

Magnitude: 6.1 (Mwc, centroid moment), strong
Magnitude from: USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time: Sat, Oct 27, 2001, 10:05 AM GMT+11
UTC: 2001-10-26 23:05:50 UTC
Depth: 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 18.494° S, 168.108° E
Region: Vanuatu
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
6.1	Mwc, centroid moment	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Preferred · Reviewed
6.08	Mw, moment	ISC-GEM global catalog	Final · ±0.1
6.1	Mwc, centroid moment	Global CMT project	Preliminary
5.89	Me, energy	Choy, USGS energy magnitude	Reviewed

Did you feel it?

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

Fault motion and ground failure

How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.

Faulting: Reverse (thrust)
Nodal plane 1: Strike 346°, dip 28°, rake 98°
Nodal plane 2: Strike 157°, dip 62°, rake 86°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Depth from: OPERATOR_ASSIGNED
Stations used: 358

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Port-Vila, VanuatuPopulation 35,901. Forecast87 kmSSW

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 3.1 and up: 8 in the 60 days after this one and 6 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

Earthquakes today Vanuatu earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp000arq0 (also filed as choy20011026230550, gcmtc102601h, gcmt20011026230551, iscgem2255164). Read Sun, Oct 4, 2026, 4:25 PM UTC.