Reviewed by USGSTonga45y ago
M4.9 earthquake 126 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga
Tuesday, October 20, 1981, 06:12:12 UTC · 15.378°S, 172.781°W
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck 126 km ENE of Hihifo, Tonga on Tuesday, October 20, 1981, 06:12:12 UTC, at a depth of 48.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.0 on October 16, 1981.
- Magnitude
- 4.9
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 48 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- —
- No ShakeMap
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
338 tons of TNT
That is about 1/45 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 1 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
31 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Tonga and Pacific plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
48 km
Shallow earthquakes (under 70 km) produce the strongest surface shaking for their size, so they are the ones most likely to cause damage near the epicenter.
Did You Feel It?
Where it was felt
No “Did You Feel It?” reports have been published for this event yet. If you felt it, you can add your report on the USGS website.
I felt it — report to USGS ↗USGS PAGER estimate
Who was exposed to shaking
USGS publishes PAGER impact estimates for significant earthquakes, usually within an hour. No PAGER estimate is available for this event.
After the main event
Aftershocks within 50 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.5 on November 14, 1981. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 456 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.0The 1917 Samoa-Tonga EarthquakeJune 26, 1917 · 68 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.8146 km ESE of Hihifo, TongaDecember 26, 1975 · 104 km S of this epicenter
- 7.7133 km NE of Hihifo, TongaSeptember 1, 1981 · 57 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.6199 km ESE of Hihifo, TongaApril 2, 1977 · 164 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.1112 km NNE of Hihifo, TongaApril 14, 1957 · 76 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.0206 km SE of Hihifo, TongaJune 17, 1978 · 199 km S of this epicenter
- 6.9127 km S of Hihifo, TongaMay 8, 1913 · 230 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.8100 km SE of Hihifo, TongaDecember 20, 1914 · 147 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 5 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1917M8.3
Samoa Islands
26 Jun 1917 · 27 km away
2 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1981M7.7
Apia; American Samoa: Pago Pago
1 Sep 1981 · 57 km away · intensity VI
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1977M7.6
Apia
2 Apr 1977 · 164 km away · intensity VI
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1975M7.8
Samoa Islands
26 Dec 1975 · 104 km away · intensity V
tsunami
- 1957M7.5
Samoa Islands
14 Apr 1957 · 27 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.