M6.2 earthquake 175 km WNW of Pangai, Tonga
A magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck 175 km WNW of Pangai, Tonga on Mon, May 25, 2015, 3:38 AM GMT+13 (14:38 UTC), 10 km (6 mi) below the surface.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 6.2 (Mww, W-phase moment), strong
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 2015-05-24 14:38:59 UTC
- Depth
- 10.0 km (6.2 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 19.393° S, 175.963° W
- Region
- Tonga
- Strongest shaking
- IV, light shaking
- PAGER alert
- Green
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.2 | Mww, W-phase moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Preferred · Reviewed |
| 6.26 | Mw, moment | ISC-GEM global catalog | Final · ±0.1 |
| 6.2 | Mwc, centroid moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Moment tensor · Reviewed |
| 6.3 | Mwc, centroid moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Moment tensor · Reviewed |
| 6.2 | Mwb, body-wave moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Moment tensor · Reviewed |
Shaking
The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.
- Strongest estimated
- IV, light shaking
- Map
- Automatic
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
Estimated impact
The USGS PAGER system estimates deaths and economic losses from the shaking and the population and buildings exposed to it.
- Alert level
- Green: little or no damage or loss of life expected
Fault motion and ground failure
How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.
- Faulting
- Strike-slip
- Moment magnitude
- 6.2 Mww
- Nodal plane 1
- Strike 310°, dip 86°, rake 168°
- Nodal plane 2
- Strike 41°, dip 78°, rake 4°
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Location uncertainty
- About 7.6 km horizontally, 1.7 km in depth
- Depth from
- Operator assigned
- Station coverage gap
- 60°
- Stations used
- 292
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 3.2 and up: 6 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.9164 km NNW of Nuku‘alofa, Tonga · 4151 days ago · 10 km deep · 48 km away
- 4.3244 km WNW of Pangai, Tonga · 4138 days ago · 255 km deep · 72 km away
- 4.5112 km NNW of Nuku‘alofa, Tonga · 4137 days ago · 130 km deep · 97 km away
- 4.3162 km NNW of Nuku‘alofa, Tonga · 4123 days ago · 190 km deep · 54 km away
- 5.576 km WNW of Pangai, Tonga · 4122 days ago · 138 km deep · 99 km away · felt by 1
- 4.3266 km WNW of Pangai, Tonga · 4107 days ago · 255 km deep · 91 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us10002bx8 (also filed as gcmt20150524143902, iscgem610634789). Read Mon, Oct 5, 2026, 4:39 AM UTC.