M4.4 earthquake 138 km SW of Gataivai, Samoa
A magnitude 4.4 earthquake struck 138 km SW of Gataivai, Samoa on Mon, Dec 9, 2019, 12:03 PM GMT+14 (22:03 UTC), 10 km (6 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M4.9 116 km NE 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
- 4.4 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 2019-12-08 22:03:05 UTC
- Depth
- 10.0 km (6.2 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 14.762° S, 173.170° W
- Region
- Samoa
- 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 9.8 km horizontally, 1.9 km in depth
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.13
- Depth from
- Operator assigned
- Station coverage gap
- 87°
- Stations used
- 25
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 5 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.6108 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 2486 days ago · 10 km deep · 40 km away
- 4.9116 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 2480 days ago · 10 km deep · 51 km away
- 4.679 km N of Hihifo, Tonga · 2474 days ago · 125 km deep · 81 km away
- 4.575 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 2473 days ago · 10 km deep · 74 km away
- 4.797 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 2449 days ago · 10 km deep · 51 km away
Before
- 5.292 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga · 2503 days ago · 10 km deep · 56 km away · felt by 1
- 4.4135 km SSW of Gataivai, Samoa · 2507 days ago · 10 km deep · 51 km away
- 4.593 km N of Hihifo, Tonga · 2509 days ago · 35 km deep · 71 km away
- 4.693 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga · 2515 days ago · 10 km deep · 60 km away
- 4.560 km N of Hihifo, Tonga · 2518 days ago · 110 km deep · 97 km away
Earthquakes todaySamoa earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us60006rah. Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 11:54 PM UTC.