May 3, 2024

Tonga undersea volcano eruption released up to 18 megatons of energy

The current eruptions bigger that freshly developed island, at least.” The just recently formed Tongan island of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haapai was damaged by powerful volcanic eruptions in mid-January 2022, leaving 2 small residues separated by the sea. (Image credit: NASA Earth Observatory image by Joshua Stevens, using elevation information courtesy of Dan Slayback/NASA/GSFC) The mid-January eruptions reversed this island-building work, however, blasting away the just recently created land and leaving little, separated residues of Hunga Tonga and Hunga Haapai.

Researchers are beginning to take the measure of the monster volcanic eruption that rocked the South Pacific kingdom of Tonga previously this month.The undersea volcano had been burbling given that late December 2021, shaking the seas near Tonga with a series of outbursts. The recent eruptions bigger that newly created island, at least.” The recently formed Tongan island of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haapai was ruined by effective volcanic eruptions in mid-January 2022, leaving 2 little residues separated by the sea. (Image credit: NASA Earth Observatory image by Joshua Stevens, using elevation data courtesy of Dan Slayback/NASA/GSFC) The mid-January eruptions reversed this island-building work, however, blasting away the just recently produced land and leaving small, separated residues of Hunga Tonga and Hunga Haapai.