Reviewed by USGSTonga24y ago
M6.5 earthquake 262 km WNW of Haveluloto, Tonga
Saturday, January 4, 2003, 05:15:03 UTC · 20.570°S, 177.661°W
A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck 262 km WNW of Haveluloto, Tonga on Saturday, January 4, 2003, 05:15:03 UTC, at a depth of 378.0 km (deep). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.7 on August 19, 2002.
- Magnitude
- 6.5
- Strong · mwc
- Depth
- 378 km
- Deep
- 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
85 kilotons of TNT
That is about 6 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 178 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
150 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Tonga and Australian plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: deep
378 km
Deep earthquakes (over 300 km) happen deep inside subducting plates. They rarely cause damage, but can be felt faintly over very large distances.
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 9 M2.5+ earthquakes within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.6 on January 20, 2003. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 4.4283 km WNW of Haveluloto, Tonga23y ago · 77 km N of this epicenter
- 5.0Fiji region24y ago · 72 km W of this epicenter
- 5.6Fiji region24y ago · 82 km W of this epicenter
- 4.3Fiji region24y ago · 93 km NW of this epicenter
- 4.4Fiji region24y ago · 43 km W of this epicenter
- 4.8269 km WNW of Haveluloto, Tonga24y ago · 47 km N of this epicenter
- 4.0194 km W of Haveluloto, Tonga24y ago · 93 km SE of this epicenter
- 4.8Fiji region24y ago · 51 km NW of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 1,201 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.0TongaJanuary 4, 1903 · 285 km E of this epicenter
- 7.8159 km W of Pangai, TongaDecember 14, 1950 · 210 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.8Fiji regionJanuary 1, 1919 · 146 km N of this epicenter
- 7.8192 km WSW of Haveluloto, TongaOctober 14, 1997 · 194 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.7Fiji regionAugust 19, 2002 · 229 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.6178 km E of Levuka, FijiFebruary 22, 1909 · 299 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.6240 km E of Levuka, FijiMarch 9, 1994 · 292 km N of this epicenter
- 7.5262 km WNW of Haveluloto, TongaMay 21, 1962 · 58 km N of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 10 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1937M8.1
Fiji Islands
16 Apr 1937 · 124 km away
- 1903M8.0
Tonga Islands
4 Jan 1903 · 285 km away
- 1919M7.8
Fiji Islands
1 Jan 1919 · 146 km away
tsunami
- 1950M7.7
Tonga Islands
14 Dec 1950 · 210 km away · intensity VI
- 1997M7.7
Tonga Islands
14 Oct 1997 · 194 km away
tsunami
- 2002M7.7
Fiji Islands
19 Aug 2002 · 229 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.