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M5.0 Earthquake near Tonga Islands

UTC time: 2025-05-21 15:19:25 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
129.0 km
Source
GFZ

Tonga Islands

Map

M5.0 Earthquake near Tonga Islands · 2025-05-21 — Map showing the location of the epicenter
M5.0 Earthquake near Tonga Islands · 2025-05-21 — Map showing the location of the epicenter

About this earthquake

A magnitude M5.0 earthquake was recorded near Tonga Islands on May 21, 2025 at 15:19 UTC. The earthquake originated at an intermediate depth of about 129 km. Earthquakes of this magnitude can damage poorly built structures.

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

Details

ID
bdf2b7016c8d976bd51ee99763595d1bb94bbbb6
Magnitude
M5.0
Depth
129.0 km
UTC time
2025-05-21 15:19:25 UTC
Local time
—
Country
—
Source
gfz
Coordinates
-16.41000, -174.08000
Temperature
26.7°C

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 129 km (Intermediate) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 129 km
Intermediate
129 km
Why depth matters

Intermediate-depth quakes are felt across a wider area but usually cause less surface damage.

Depth classes per USGS

Nearby population centers

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

PlaceDistanceDirectionPopulation
Apia379.1 kmNE40'407

GeoNames · CC BY 4.0

Volcanoes nearby

  • Tafahi
    Distance: 71 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 546 m ·Tonga
  • Curacoa
    Distance: 98 km ·Complex ·Elevation: -33 m ·Last eruption: 1979 ·Tonga
  • Niuatahi
    Distance: 116 km ·Caldera ·Elevation: -1'270 m ·Tonga
  • Tafu-Maka
    Distance: 117 km ·Fissure vent ·Elevation: -1'400 m ·Last eruption: 2008 ·Tonga
  • West Mata
    Distance: 150 km ·Fissure vent(s) ·Elevation: -1'174 m ·Last eruption: 2009 ·Tonga
  • Fonualei
    Distance: 181 km ·Stratovolcano ·Elevation: 188 m ·Last eruption: 1957 ·Tonga

Radius · 100 km

Nearby infrastructure

Up to 3 nearest sites per category

Airports

  • Kuini Lavenia AirportTonga · NTT · NFTP
    57.2 kmStraight-line distance

Source: OurAirports · Dataset date: 2026-10-04

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 hours0
Strongest subsequent eventM5.4
M4.72025-05-31 13:14:52 UTC65.6 kmTONGA M5.02025-05-31 13:14:54 UTC74.6 kmTonga Islands M4.52025-06-13 08:59:37 UTC66.2 kmTONGA M4.52025-06-13 08:59:39 UTC78.9 km132 km SSW of Hihifo, Tonga M5.42025-06-16 06:17:13 UTC72.7 kmTonga Islands M5.02025-06-16 06:17:16 UTC75.2 km125 km S of Hihifo, Tonga M5.02025-06-16 06:17:16 UTC79.7 kmTONGA

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#7
Earlier events M≥435
Earlier events M≥57
Compared since2025-01-05

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

Strongest earlier events

M5.62025-04-04 08:01:06 UTC101.8 km84 km WNW of Hihifo, Tonga M5.52025-02-20 10:31:20 UTC118.7 km68 km NNW of Hihifo, Tonga M5.32025-04-12 03:16:35 UTC29.1 km74 km S of Hihifo, Tonga M5.32025-04-04 08:01:50 UTC122.4 km105 km WNW of Hihifo, Tonga M5.22025-05-18 07:54:38 UTC123.5 kmTonga Islands

Stats (last 24h)

Global (24h)
494
Country (24h)
—
—
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