M4.9 earthquake 112 km E of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck 112 km E of Hihifo, Tonga on Thu, Feb 7, 2008, 1:44 AM GMT-11 (12:44 UTC), 10 km (6 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.5 127 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
- 4.9 (Mwc, centroid moment), light
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 2008-02-07 12:44:07 UTC
- Depth
- 10.0 km (6.2 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 15.848° S, 172.756° W
- Region
- Tonga
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4.9 | Mwc, centroid moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Preferred · Reviewed |
| 4.9 | Mwc, centroid moment | Global CMT project | Preliminary |
What happened
The USGS’s account of the effects of this earthquake.
no people dead or missing; no people injured; no buildings damaged or destroyed
From the USGS event page for usp000fycn. 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.
Fault motion and ground failure
How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.
- Faulting
- Oblique reverse
- Nodal plane 1
- Strike 222°, dip 36°, rake 128°
- Nodal plane 2
- Strike 358°, dip 63°, rake 66°
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Depth from
- OPERATOR_ASSIGNED
- Station coverage gap
- 144°
- Stations used
- 22
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.9 and up: 4 in the 60 days after this one and 4 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.458 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 6803 days ago · 76 km deep · 95 km away
- 4.189 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 6795 days ago · 10 km deep · 98 km away
- 5.077 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 6784 days ago · 50 km deep · 60 km away
- 5.5127 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 6757 days ago · 35 km deep · 64 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp000fycn (also filed as gcmtc200802071244a, gcmt20080207124408). Read Sat, Oct 3, 2026, 10:50 PM UTC.