Reviewed by USGSTonga27y ago
M4.6 earthquake 148 km NNE of Neiafu, Tonga
Saturday, February 12, 2000, 18:51:49 UTC · 17.391°S, 173.498°W
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 148 km NNE of Neiafu, Tonga on Saturday, February 12, 2000, 18:51:49 UTC, at a depth of 33.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.9 on February 12, 2000.
- Magnitude
- 4.6
- Light · mb
- 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 earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
120 tons of TNT
That is about 1/126 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 4 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
114 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Tonga and Niuafo'ou plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
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 50 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 1,243 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 · 152 km SE of this epicenter
- 8.0The 1917 Samoa-Tonga EarthquakeJune 26, 1917 · 267 km N of this epicenter
- 7.8146 km ESE of Hihifo, TongaDecember 26, 1975 · 167 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.7133 km NE of Hihifo, TongaSeptember 1, 1981 · 274 km N of this epicenter
- 7.6199 km ESE of Hihifo, TongaApril 2, 1977 · 168 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.488 km NNE of Hihifo, TongaApril 7, 1995 · 244 km N of this epicenter
- 7.4103 km ESE of Neiafu, TongaFebruary 27, 1921 · 175 km S of this epicenter
- 7.385 km ESE of Neiafu, TongaJanuary 2, 1907 · 188 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 13 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 · 217 km away
2 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1919M8.1
Tonga Islands
30 Apr 1919 · 149 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1865M8.0
Tonga Islands
18 Nov 1865 · 235 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1981M7.7
Apia; American Samoa: Pago Pago
1 Sep 1981 · 274 km away · intensity VI
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1977M7.6
Apia
2 Apr 1977 · 168 km away · intensity VI
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1902M7.8
Tonga Islands
9 Feb 1902 · 295 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.