M4.7 earthquake 66 km NNE of Neiafu, Tonga
A magnitude 4.7 earthquake struck 66 km NNE of Neiafu, Tonga on Mon, Dec 17, 2018, 12:17 PM GMT+13 (23:17 UTC), 36 km (22 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.7 148 km S 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
- 4.7 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 2018-12-16 23:17:17 UTC
- Depth
- 35.7 km (22.2 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 18.076° S, 173.812° W
- Region
- Tonga
- Felt reports
- 1
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Did you feel it?
1 person reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was IV, light shaking.
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Location uncertainty
- About 11.7 km horizontally, 7.2 km in depth
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.09
- Depth from
- From location
- Station coverage gap
- 103°
- Stations used
- 44
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.7 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.7148 km S of Hihifo, Tonga · 2832 days ago · 120 km deep · 91 km away · felt by 1
- 4.894 km E of Neiafu, Tonga · 2824 days ago · 10 km deep · 97 km away
- 5.2113 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga · 2819 days ago · 10 km deep · 68 km away
- 4.990 km NW of Neiafu, Tonga · 2819 days ago · 10 km deep · 84 km away
- 4.6129 km NNW of Neiafu, Tonga · 2818 days ago · 10 km deep · 79 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us2000ivww. Read Sun, Sep 27, 2026, 8:46 PM UTC.