November 28, 1985 Earthquake: Vanuatu Islands
A magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck Vanuatu Islands on November 28, 1985 at 03:49:54 UTC, 33 km below the surface.
Map
Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Date
- November 28, 1985
- Time
- 03:49:54 UTC
- Place
- Vanuatu Islands
- Magnitude
- 7.6 (Ms)
- Focal depth
- 33 km (21 mi)
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 13.987° S, 166.185° E
- Country
- Vanuatu
The toll
The record gives no deaths, injuries or damage for this earthquake.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
Reference #1053 lists magnitude 7.1 MS (USGS), 7.6 MS (BRK)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- November 10, 1910, Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu Islands
- December 21, 1985, Vanuatu Islands
- August 11, 1970, Solomon Islands
- May 27, 2010, Vanuatu Islands
- December 28, 1973, Espiritu Santo, Luganille, Vanuatu Islands
- April 3, 2016, Vanuatu Islands
- November 4, 1953, Solomon Islands
- October 7, 2009, Vanuatu Islands
- December 29, 1973, Luganville, Lamap, Vanuatu Islands
- August 1892, Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu Islands
- August 5, 1982, Santa Cruz Islands, Solomon Islands
- April 21, 1997, Santa Cruz Islands, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands
- October 7, 2009, Santa Cruz Islands, Solomon Islands
- July 17, 1980, Santa Cruz Islands, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands
- July 5, 1964, Espiritu Santo Islands, Vanuatu Islands
More
Significant earthquakes of 1985The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1985Recent earthquakes near hereThis day in weather history
Sources
Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 5086.