Tonga earthquakes

M4.5 earthquake 144 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga

A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 144 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga on Mon, Jul 21, 2008, 10:21 AM GMT-12 (22:21 UTC), 70 km (44 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M4.8 114 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.

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Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude
4.5 (mb, body-wave), light
Magnitude from
USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time
UTC
2008-07-21 22:21:39 UTC
Depth
70.4 km (43.7 mi), intermediate-depth
Epicenter
17.393° S, 174.351° 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 usp000gcuj. 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
52°
Stations used
45

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 7 in the 60 days after this one and 5 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 4.1100 km SSW of Hihifo, Tonga · 6630 days ago · 147 km deep · 71 km away
  2. 4.8114 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga · 6623 days ago · 149 km deep · 89 km away
  3. 4.4120 km WNW of Neiafu, Tonga · 6605 days ago · 170 km deep · 96 km away
  4. 4.3201 km NW of Neiafu, Tonga · 6601 days ago · 252 km deep · 96 km away
  5. 4.1156 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga · 6601 days ago · 226 km deep · 24 km away
  6. 4.5104 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga · 6601 days ago · 128 km deep · 40 km away
  7. 4.7124 km N of Neiafu, Tonga · 6595 days ago · 35 km deep · 60 km away

Before

  1. 4.0162 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga · 6662 days ago · 322 km deep · 85 km away
  2. 3.895 km SSW of Hihifo, Tonga · 6665 days ago · 105 km deep · 74 km away
  3. 4.4106 km NW of Neiafu, Tonga · 6666 days ago · 80 km deep · 62 km away
  4. 4.4143 km S of Hihifo, Tonga · 6669 days ago · 10 km deep · 53 km away
  5. 4.3114 km S of Hihifo, Tonga · 6674 days ago · 35 km deep · 87 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp000gcuj. Read Sun, Oct 4, 2026, 3:56 PM UTC.