Tonga earthquakes

M5.3 earthquake 171 km NNW of Houma, Tonga

A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck 171 km NNW of Houma, Tonga on Sun, Mar 31, 2024, 5:44 AM GMT+13 (16:44 UTC), 10 km (6 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.7 172 km WNW of Pangai, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.

Nuku‘alofa forecast More in Tonga

Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude: 5.3 (Mww, W-phase moment), moderate
Magnitude from: USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time: Sun, Mar 31, 2024, 5:44 AM GMT+13
UTC: 2024-03-30 16:44:25 UTC
Depth: 10.2 km (6.4 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 19.771° S, 176.002° W
Region: Tonga
Tsunami flag: No
Status: Reviewed by a seismologist

Magnitude estimates

Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.

Mag.	Scale	Computed by	Notes
5.3	Mww, W-phase moment	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Preferred · Reviewed · ±0.063 · 24 stations
5.3	Mww, W-phase moment	USGS, automatic first solution	First automatic solution · Preliminary

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, 3.5 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty: ±0.06
Depth from: From location
Station coverage gap: 67°
Stations used: 102

Nearest places

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

Nuku‘alofa, TongaPopulation 22,400. Forecast173 kmNNW

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.3 and up: 18 in the 60 days after this one and 5 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

Earthquakes today Tonga earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us7000m8yl (also filed as usauto7000m8yl). Read Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 4:04 PM UTC.