Tonga earthquakes

M3.5 earthquake 124 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga

A magnitude 3.5 earthquake struck 124 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga on Sat, Dec 6, 2008, 11:30 PM GMT-12 (11:30 UTC), 185 km (115 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.1 149 km WSW of Hihifo, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.

More in Tonga

Map

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

Open the live map with earthquakes

The earthquake

Magnitude
3.5 (mb, body-wave), minor
Magnitude from
USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time
UTC
2008-12-07 11:30:10 UTC
Depth
184.6 km (114.7 mi), intermediate-depth
Epicenter
16.687° S, 174.680° W
Region
Tonga
Tsunami flag
No
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

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 usp000gq3x. 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.

Station coverage gap
151°
Stations used
17

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 8 in the 60 days after this one and 6 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 3.859 km SSW of Hihifo, Tonga · 6504 days ago · 77 km deep · 72 km away
  2. 4.881 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga · 6503 days ago · 140 km deep · 44 km away
  3. 4.434 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga · 6500 days ago · 95 km deep · 90 km away
  4. 3.6148 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga · 6490 days ago · 200 km deep · 26 km away
  5. 4.960 km S of Hihifo, Tonga · 6472 days ago · 69 km deep · 96 km away
  6. 5.1149 km WSW of Hihifo, Tonga · 6469 days ago · 47 km deep · 44 km away
  7. 4.758 km S of Hihifo, Tonga · 6456 days ago · 27 km deep · 92 km away
  8. 4.877 km S of Hihifo, Tonga · 6451 days ago · 95 km deep · 99 km away

Before

  1. 4.499 km SSW of Hihifo, Tonga · 6515 days ago · 104 km deep · 63 km away
  2. 4.4Tonga · 6522 days ago · 131 km deep · 52 km away
  3. 4.077 km S of Hihifo, Tonga · 6523 days ago · 85 km deep · 96 km away
  4. 4.5158 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga · 6531 days ago · 227 km deep · 40 km away
  5. 4.2154 km SSW of Hihifo, Tonga · 6540 days ago · 223 km deep · 58 km away
  6. 3.4151 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga · 6540 days ago · 150 km deep · 79 km away

Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp000gq3x. Read Mon, Oct 5, 2026, 1:45 PM UTC.