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New Zealand · Wellington

M3.1 Earthquake near Wellington (New Zealand)

UTC time: 2026-01-15 12:26:15 UTC Local time: —

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About this earthquake

On January 15, 2026 at 12:26 UTC, a magnitude M3.1 earthquake occurred near Wellington (New Zealand). The hypocenter lay relatively close to the surface at around 45 km, increasing how strongly it was felt. Earthquakes of this magnitude are often felt but rarely cause damage.

The event was recorded by EMSC. New Zealand: over the past 24 hours, QuakeMap24 logged 5 earthquakes, the strongest at M4.0.

Details

ID
893dff721f16b4d0e9b185522e5a2f2e4562f23e
Magnitude
M3.1
Depth
45.0 km
UTC time
2026-01-15 12:26:15 UTC
Local time
—
Country
New Zealand
State
Wellington
City
Wellington
Source
emsc
Coordinates
-40.82350, 174.63190
Temperature
16.5°C

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 45 km (Shallow) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 45 km
Shallow
45 km
45 km — shallower than the regional average (70.9 km)
Regional average: 70.9 km
Why depth matters

Shallow quakes release energy near the surface — shaking is felt more strongly and damage potential is higher.

Depth classes per USGS

Volcanoes nearby

  • Taranaki
    Distance: 176 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 2'518 m ·Last eruption: 1800 ·New Zealand
  • Ruapehu
    Distance: 189 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 2'797 m ·Last eruption: 2007 ·New Zealand
  • Tongariro
    Distance: 204 km ·Stratovolcano(es) ·Elevation: 1'978 m ·Last eruption: 2012 ·New Zealand
  • Taupo
    Distance: 251 km ·Caldera ·Elevation: 760 m ·Last eruption: 260 ·New Zealand
  • Okataina
    Distance: 337 km ·Lava dome(s) ·Elevation: 1'111 m ·Last eruption: 1981 ·New Zealand
  • Tuhua/Mayor Island
    Distance: 418 km ·Shield ·Elevation: 355 m ·Last eruption: -5055 ·New Zealand

Radius · 50 km

Nearby infrastructure

Up to 3 nearest sites per category

Airports

  • Otaki AirportNew Zealand · NZOT
    43.9 kmStraight-line distance

Source: OurAirports · Dataset date: 2026-10-05

This selection shows geographic proximity, not a hazard zone or confirmed impacts. Distances use recorded site coordinates. Sources & data dates

New Zealand

Context for this earthquake

05 Oct 2025 – 05 Oct 2026 · M ≥ 3.0 · 725 Catalogue entries

Sufficiently reliable matching data are not currently available for a direct comparison. The area profile shows the available records and their limitations.

Open seismic profile

Historic earthquake map · New Zealand

Open history map
Explore recent and long-term earthquake activity in this country. Use filters to narrow down by magnitude, depth, and date range.

Country statistics · New Zealand

Country overview
View earthquake KPIs, strongest and latest events, and averages for this country.

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