Curiosmos
  • Home
  • Unsolved Mysteries
  • Ancient Civilizations
  • Cosmic Phenomena
  • Alien Theories
  • Curious Lists
No Result
View All Result
Like us on Facebook
Curiosmos
  • Home
  • Unsolved Mysteries
  • Ancient Civilizations
  • Cosmic Phenomena
  • Alien Theories
  • Curious Lists
No Result
View All Result
Curiosmos
No Result
View All Result

5 Things We Learned From the Mega Explosion of Tonga’s Volcano

Vladislav TchakarovbyVladislav Tchakarov
February 8, 2022 - Updated on January 21, 2024
in Editor's Picks
What did we learn from the Hunga-Tonga volcanic eruption. Credit: UNICEF/NOAA

What did we learn from the Hunga-Tonga volcanic eruption. Credit: UNICEF/NOAA

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

The powerful eruption of the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Haapai volcano and the tsunami provoked by it led to large-scale destruction in the island Kingdom of Tonga in the Pacific Ocean.

The volcano belongs to the Tonga-Kermadec island arc – here the Pacific plate goes under the Indo-Australian one – and has never been particularly active.

From 1912 until January 2022, it erupted five times. None of the eruptions until the most recent one exceeded 2 on the Volcanic Activity Scale.

The January 15 eruption likely lies at or above 5 on this scale. This means, in particular, that it threw more than a cubic kilometer of ash to a height of more than 10 kilometers. With this said, here are five curious things that we learned after the powerful volcanic explosion.

Related Posts

Why are pyramids everywhere? This is a beautiful photo of the Great Pyramid at sunset.

Why are pyramids everywhere? A global pattern or universal logic

May 23, 2025
Greatest threats to the future of humankind

Greatest threats to the future of humankind according to scientists

November 5, 2018 - Updated on April 15, 2025

The islands that surrounded the volcano disappeared almost entirely

As the scientists explained, in December 2014, after the eruption of the Tonga volcano, a new part of the land began to appear between the two uninhabited islands, forming a single volcanic island of Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Hapai. According to them, the 2022 eruption was so powerful that the newly appeared part of the land disappeared along with two old islands.

https://twitter.com/NASAEarth/status/1483879094710329344?s=20&t=9quMfvxv3GtsMPBQhSZSEw

Eruptions of this magnitude are rare

According to statistics, eruptions of this magnitude occur no more than once every 12 years. After accurate calculations of the amount of ash thrown out, the eruption in Tonga may turn out to be the most powerful on the planet in the last 30 years. Volcanologists are already comparing it to the catastrophic explosions of Krakatoa in Indonesia in 1883 and Pinatubo in the Philippines in 1991.

The energy released during the eruption was about 500 times stronger than the energy of the atomic bomb in Hiroshima.

The Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Haapai eruption will not have long-term effects on the climate

Large eruptions in the past have cooled the planet’s climate by throwing ash and sulfate aerosols into the atmosphere. When Tambora Volcano erupted in Indonesia in 1815, the world’s average temperature dropped by 3 degrees Celsius. The Pinatubo eruption in 1991 also affected the global climate. The volcano spit out 17 megatons of sulfur dioxide, and over the next 15 months, temperatures averaged 0.6 degrees Celsius lower.

Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Haapai, although it exploded powerfully, released only 0.4 megatons of SO 2 into the atmosphere. According to scientists, this is not enough to cause a noticeable climate shift. The cooling will be local – and will be a maximum of a few tenths of a degree.

People in Alaska heard the volcanic eruption

One of the most surprising reports was that the eruption was heard in Alaska, almost 10,000 kilometers away from the epicenter. In an Alaska public report, residents said they were awakened by a loud chime Saturday morning. Moving at the speed of sound – about 1225 km / h at sea level – the noises were heard about eight hours after the start of the eruption.

https://twitter.com/AGU_Eos/status/1484654442557366274?s=20&t=GGMUPYoawgB2svDp7mdVQQ

Тhe Hunga-Tonga eruption caused fluctuations in the ionosphere

Scientists hadn’t recorded such clear acoustic-gravitational waves from a volcanic eruption to date. In most cases, AGWs are associated with tsunamis, earthquakes, and various types of artificial explosions.

The Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Haapai volcano produced a shockwave that was able to penetrate the ionosphere, which is 80-90 kilometers above the surface of our planet. Even a week after the eruption, acoustic-gravitational waves were detected after orbiting our planet over and over again.


Join the discussion and participate in awesome giveaways in our mobile Telegram group. Join Curiosmos on Telegram Today. t.me/Curiosmos


Sources:

• Collins, J. (2022, February 8). The fallout from Tonga’s volcano goes deeper than the Ashes. The Interpreter.
• Latu-Sanft, J. (2022, February 7). The Tongan volcano is a reminder of island nations’ vulnerabilities. Scientific American.
• NASA. (n.d.). Tonga eruption sent ripples through Earth’s ionosphere.
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (n.d.). Ripple effect: What the Tonga eruption could mean for tsunami research.

Share157Tweet98Share27ShareSend
Vladislav Tchakarov

Vladislav Tchakarov

Hello, my name is Vladislav and I am glad to have you here on Curiosmos. As a history student, I have a strong passion for history and science, and the opportunity to research and write in this field on a daily basis is a dream come true.

Related Posts

An illustration of the ancient Maya calendar. Yayimages.
Editor's Picks

The ancient calendars that predicted the end of worlds

April 29, 2025
An artists rendering of a planet colonized by intelligent alien beings. Shutterstock.
Editor's Picks

Could our Telescopes Spot a Distant Alien City?

June 22, 2023 - Updated on January 20, 2024
An ancient Inca wall at the city of Machu Picchu. Shutterstock.
Editor's Picks

Did ancient builders know how to earthquake-proof stone structures?

May 5, 2025
Image Credit: J. A. Peñas/SINC / NAIC-Arecibo / NSF
Editor's Picks

Here Are 6 of the Weirdest Asteroids Ever Found

May 24, 2019 - Updated on May 2, 2023
A shard of an ancient ceramic vessel from the insufficiently studied San Pedro complex found on Real Alto site, Ecuador. FEFU press office.
Editor's Picks

Researchers Find Evidence of an Unknown 6,600-Year-Old Civilization in Ecuador

July 24, 2019 - Updated on January 22, 2024
An artists rendering of light inside a pyramid. Shutterstock.
Editor's Picks

These Three Pyramids Are The World’s Largest, And You Probably Never Heard About Them

June 10, 2020 - Updated on January 21, 2024
  • About
  • Privacy Policy
  • Fair Use Notice
  • DMCA / Removal
  • Impressum
  • Contact
  • Fact-Checking Policy
  • Ethics Policy
  • Ownership and Funding Information
  • Impressum
CURIOSMOS.COM

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Unsolved Mysteries
  • Ancient Civilizations
  • Cosmic Phenomena
  • Alien Theories
  • Curious Lists