Tonga earthquakes

M4.8 earthquake 150 km E of ‘Ohonua, Tonga

A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 150 km E of ‘Ohonua, Tonga on Sun, Dec 19, 2021, 9:10 AM GMT+13 (20:10 UTC), 10 km (6 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.5 118 km E of ‘Ohonua, 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
4.8 (mb), light
Local time
UTC
2021-12-18 20:10:54 UTC
Depth
10.0 km (6.2 mi), shallow
Epicenter
21.289° S, 173.502° 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, 1.9 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.21
Depth from
Operator assigned
Station coverage gap
111°
Stations used
15

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.8 and up: 9 in the 60 days after this one and 5 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 5.5118 km E of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 1738 days ago · 11 km deep · 36 km away
  2. 4.9109 km E of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 1733 days ago · 10 km deep · 42 km away
  3. 4.5100 km ENE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 1732 days ago · 10 km deep · 81 km away
  4. 4.192 km E of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 1729 days ago · 10 km deep · 60 km away
  5. 5.095 km SSE of Pangai, Tonga · 1724 days ago · 10 km deep · 90 km away
  6. 4.7Tonga region · 1703 days ago · 10 km deep · 93 km away
  7. 5.574 km ENE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 1701 days ago · 10 km deep · 82 km away
  8. 4.782 km ENE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 1701 days ago · 10 km deep · 75 km away
  9. 4.683 km ENE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 1699 days ago · 10 km deep · 85 km away

Before

  1. 4.4112 km ESE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 1757 days ago · 10 km deep · 57 km away
  2. 5.3127 km ESE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 1761 days ago · 10 km deep · 50 km away
  3. 4.3114 km E of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 1764 days ago · 10 km deep · 39 km away
  4. 4.981 km ENE of ‘Ohonua, Tonga · 1767 days ago · 10 km deep · 84 km away
  5. 4.4149 km SE of Pangai, Tonga · 1776 days ago · 10 km deep · 46 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us6000gekh. Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 9:26 PM UTC.