M4.8 earthquake 61 km SSW of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 61 km SSW of Hihifo, Tonga on Wed, Mar 18, 2020, 10:26 PM GMT+14 (08:26 UTC), 68 km (42 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M4.9 17 km SSE 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
- 4.8 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 2020-03-18 08:26:33 UTC
- Depth
- 68.0 km (42.2 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 16.440° S, 174.081° 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 7.2 km horizontally, 5.8 km in depth
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.05
- Depth from
- From location
- Station coverage gap
- 55°
- Stations used
- 62
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.8 and up: 4 in the 60 days after this one and 5 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.917 km SSE of Hihifo, Tonga · 2383 days ago · 49 km deep · 54 km away
- 4.3122 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga · 2377 days ago · 135 km deep · 65 km away
- 4.876 km SSE of Hihifo, Tonga · 2374 days ago · 77 km deep · 52 km away
- 4.666 km ESE of Hihifo, Tonga · 2340 days ago · 37 km deep · 99 km away
Before
- 4.3150 km SSW of Hihifo, Tonga · 2396 days ago · 91 km deep · 92 km away
- 4.461 km SSE of Hihifo, Tonga · 2397 days ago · 102 km deep · 46 km away
- 4.58 km SW of Hihifo, Tonga · 2400 days ago · 112 km deep · 54 km away
- 4.3110 km WSW of Hihifo, Tonga · 2401 days ago · 269 km deep · 76 km away
- 4.5146 km SSW of Hihifo, Tonga · 2405 days ago · 91 km deep · 85 km away
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us60008hns. Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 5:34 PM UTC.