Tonga earthquakes

M4.6 earthquake Tonga

A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck in Tonga on Mon, Sep 12, 2016, 2:33 PM GMT+13 (01:33 UTC), 35 km (22 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.0 127 km E of Pangai, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.

Nuku‘alofa forecastMore in Tonga

Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude
4.6 (mb, body-wave), light
Magnitude from
USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time
UTC
2016-09-12 01:33:38 UTC
Depth
35.0 km (21.7 mi), shallow
Epicenter
19.530° S, 173.641° W
Region
Tonga
Tsunami flag
No
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

Did you feel it?

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty
About 12.8 km horizontally, 2.0 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.12
Depth from
Operator assigned
Station coverage gap
102°
Stations used
28

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.6 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 8 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 5.0127 km E of Pangai, Tonga · 3673 days ago · 35 km deep · 56 km away
  2. 4.882 km E of Pangai, Tonga · 3663 days ago · 48 km deep · 32 km away
  3. 4.555 km SSE of Pangai, Tonga · 3661 days ago · 35 km deep · 99 km away
  4. 4.5131 km ESE of Neiafu, Tonga · 3656 days ago · 10 km deep · 79 km away
  5. 4.339 km ESE of Neiafu, Tonga · 3652 days ago · 106 km deep · 86 km away

Before

  1. 4.3105 km ESE of Pangai, Tonga · 3680 days ago · 6 km deep · 82 km away
  2. 4.9105 km ESE of Pangai, Tonga · 3683 days ago · 21 km deep · 73 km away
  3. 4.634 km SSE of Neiafu, Tonga · 3684 days ago · 10 km deep · 70 km away
  4. 4.436 km E of Neiafu, Tonga · 3684 days ago · 10 km deep · 91 km away
  5. 4.672 km NE of Pangai, Tonga · 3684 days ago · 10 km deep · 31 km away
  6. 4.593 km ENE of Pangai, Tonga · 3684 days ago · 10 km deep · 13 km away
  7. 5.576 km ENE of Pangai, Tonga · 3684 days ago · 10 km deep · 8 km away · felt by 2
  8. 4.8138 km ESE of Neiafu, Tonga · 3693 days ago · 10 km deep · 90 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us10006qut. Read Sun, Oct 4, 2026, 9:15 AM UTC.