Reviewed by USGSTonga27y ago
M6.3 earthquake 147 km S of Hihifo, Tonga
Wednesday, January 26, 2000, 13:26:50 UTC · 17.272°S, 174.002°W
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck 147 km S of Hihifo, Tonga on Wednesday, January 26, 2000, 13:26:50 UTC, at a depth of 33.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.2 on January 8, 2000.
- Magnitude
- 6.3
- Strong · mwb
- Depth
- 33 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: 100 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
43 kilotons of TNT
That is about 3 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 89 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
59 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Tonga and Niuafo'ou plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
33 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 100 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.6 on February 12, 2000. 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 1,290 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.11919 Tonga EarthquakeApril 30, 1919 · 202 km SE of this epicenter
- 8.0The 1917 Samoa-Tonga EarthquakeJune 26, 1917 · 265 km N of this epicenter
- 7.8146 km ESE of Hihifo, TongaDecember 26, 1975 · 198 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.7133 km NE of Hihifo, TongaSeptember 1, 1981 · 275 km N of this epicenter
- 7.6199 km ESE of Hihifo, TongaApril 2, 1977 · 213 km E of this epicenter
- 7.488 km NNE of Hihifo, TongaApril 7, 1995 · 236 km N of this epicenter
- 7.4103 km ESE of Neiafu, TongaFebruary 27, 1921 · 208 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.385 km ESE of Neiafu, TongaJanuary 2, 1907 · 213 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 11 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 · 224 km away
2 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1919M8.1
Tonga Islands
30 Apr 1919 · 198 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1865M8.0
Tonga Islands
18 Nov 1865 · 253 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1981M7.7
Apia; American Samoa: Pago Pago
1 Sep 1981 · 275 km away · intensity VI
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1977M7.6
Apia
2 Apr 1977 · 213 km away · intensity VI
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1975M7.8
Samoa Islands
26 Dec 1975 · 198 km away · intensity V
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.