The US Geological Survey, based in the US state of Colorado, reported 12 quakes measuring between 4.4 and 6.0 that shook the region in the 24 hours following the major temblor that sparked tsunami panic in New Zealand.

The respected USGS, which had earlier put the magnitude of the main quake at 8.0, also downgraded it to 7.9, while the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center revised its own reading from 7.8 to 7.9, scientists told AFP.

But while a strong quake measuring 6.0 hit about 135 kilometers (85 miles) east of the main Tongan island of Nuku'alofa at 1125 GMT Thursday, no fresh tsunami warnings were issued.

"This quake was not nearly as large as the big one yesterday, and there was no danger of a tsunami," said oceanographer Nathan Becker from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii.

"These are calculated on a logarithmic scale, so this quake was one-tenth of the size of the big one and posed no tsunami risk," he told AFP.

The 7.9 quake, which struck at 1526 GMT Wednesday, shook Tonga but caused no major damage or injuries.

However, a brief tsunami warning prompted hundreds of people to flee their homes in the New Zealand coastal town of Gisborne, more than 2,200 kilometers (1,375 miles) from the quake's epicenter.

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