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M5.0 Earthquake near 43 km WSW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu

UTC time: 2025-01-06 21:20:45 UTC Local time: —
Earthquake newsQuakeMap24
Archive record · original publication time was not recorded

Automatically generated from measurement data by QuakeMap24. Values may change after further analysis.

Magnitude
M5.0
Depth
35.0 km
Source
USGS

43 km WSW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu

Map

M5.0 Earthquake near 43 km WSW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 2025-01-06 — Map showing the location of the epicenter
M5.0 Earthquake near 43 km WSW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu · 2025-01-06 — Map showing the location of the epicenter

About this earthquake

A magnitude M5.0 earthquake was recorded near 43 km WSW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu on January 6, 2025 at 21:20 UTC. With a focal depth of about 35 km, this was a shallow earthquake, whose shaking is usually felt more strongly at the surface. Events of this size can cause damage near the epicenter.

The data is provided by USGS and cross-checked across seismological networks.

Details

ID
a003218657c46cb7934b5d141eab239eb29559aa
Magnitude
M5.0
Depth
35.0 km
UTC time
2025-01-06 21:20:45 UTC
Local time
—
Country
—
Source
usgs
Coordinates
-17.91110, 167.94430

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 35 km (Shallow) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 35 km
Shallow
35 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

Nearby population centers

Distances are straight-line distances from the epicenter. Population data: GeoNames.

PlaceDistanceDirectionPopulation
Port Vila43.7 kmNE35'901

GeoNames · CC BY 4.0

Volcanoes nearby

  • Nguna-Emau
    Distance: 67 km ·Stratovolcano(es) ·Elevation: 589 m ·Vanuatu
  • Kuwae
    Distance: 135 km ·Caldera ·Elevation: -2 m ·Last eruption: 1974 ·Vanuatu
  • East Epi
    Distance: 145 km ·Stratovolcano(es) ·Elevation: 833 m ·Last eruption: 2023 ·Vanuatu
  • Lopevi
    Distance: 162 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 1'413 m ·Last eruption: 2007 ·Vanuatu
  • Traitor's Head
    Distance: 166 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 817 m ·Last eruption: 1881 ·Vanuatu
  • Ambrym Activity reported
    Distance: 186 km ·Shield(pyroclastic) ·Elevation: 1'334 m ·Last eruption: 2024 ·Vanuatu

Radius · 100 km

Nearby infrastructure

Up to 3 nearest sites per category

Airports

  • Bauerfield International AirportVanuatu · VLI · NVVV
    46.2 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

Subsequent earthquakes nearby

Events recorded after this earthquake within 150 km. They are not automatically classified as aftershocks.

First 6 hours0
First 24 hours0
First 72 hours3
Strongest subsequent eventM5.3
M4.12025-01-08 11:07:28 UTC21.3 km22 km WSW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu M4.32025-01-08 11:16:16 UTC23.9 km39 km W of Port-Vila, Vanuatu M5.02025-01-09 02:43:58 UTC52.7 km93 km SW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu M4.52025-01-14 07:35:23 UTC39.0 km7 km SSW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu M5.02025-01-15 07:32:20 UTC64.0 km39 km NNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu M4.42025-01-17 20:55:10 UTC142.4 km68 km S of Lakatoro, Vanuatu M5.32025-01-26 06:13:38 UTC27.9 km24 km W of Port-Vila, Vanuatu M4.22025-01-26 07:06:43 UTC104.6 km94 km SSE of Port-Vila, Vanuatu M5.12025-01-27 06:55:03 UTC24.1 km24 km W of Port-Vila, Vanuatu

No unambiguous area assignment

Context for this earthquake

This event has no unambiguous country assignment in the analysed catalogue. It is therefore not assigned to a regional profile.

Earthquake overview

Historical context nearby

Comparison with recorded earthquakes before this event within 150 km.

Magnitude rank#1
Earlier events M≥48
Earlier events M≥50
Compared since2025-01-01

The QuakeMap24 comparison dataset begins on 2024-03-23. Earlier earthquakes may not be included.

Strongest earlier events

M4.92025-01-05 05:02:13 UTC35.0 km23 km WNW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu M4.82025-01-01 04:37:23 UTC38.5 kmMangaliliu M4.62025-01-03 19:41:58 UTC22.7 km65 km WSW of Port-Vila, Vanuatu M4.52025-01-03 12:21:49 UTC102.7 km63 km NNE of Port-Vila, Vanuatu M4.52025-01-01 22:55:44 UTC128.7 km92 km S of Lakatoro, Vanuatu

Stats (last 24h)

Global (24h)
579
Country (24h)
—
—
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