Over the weekend, the China Fund News reported a huge volcanic eruption. A powerful volcanic eruption occurred in Tonga in the South Pacific. From the satellite view, it can be perceived that this is an eruption on an earth-scale level. Let’s take a few pictures to see the nature

China Fund News

Over the weekend, a massive volcanic eruption hit the screen. A powerful volcanic eruption occurred in Tonga in the South Pacific. From the satellite , it can be perceived that this is an earth-scale eruption. Here are a few first Take a picture to see the power of nature.

Around 12:10 noon on January 15th, Beijing time, a violent Plinian-type volcanic eruption occurred near Tongahong Ahaapai Island in the South Pacific island country. A large amount of gas entrained smoke and dust to form a huge mushroom cloud . Suddenly penetrating the troposphere, its momentum overwhelmed the tropical cyclone "Cody" that was active here. According to estimates from the weathermodels website, the eruption height was at least 25 kilometers.

The weather satellite captured the volcanic eruption . This thrilling scene is clearly visible even on the global cloud map. After the most violent eruption, the volcanic ash smoke cloud did not drift from west to east along the tropospheric westerly belt, but went in the opposite direction, drifting towards Australia in the west - this shows that the volcanic ash has entered the stratosphere.

The volcanic eruption of Hong'aha'apai Island, located about 65 kilometers north of Nuku'alofa, the capital of Tonga, began on the morning of the 14th. A large amount of volcanic ash, gas and water vapor formed a huge cloud, and the air quality throughout Tonga was affected. Serious impact. Tonga's National Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami warning that day, calling on people to stay away from beaches and low-lying areas and wear masks to prevent inhaling air contaminated by volcanic ash.

According to AFP , after the violent eruption of the volcano on the 14th, a tsunami followed in the area, with the wave height being about 30 centimeters. On the 15th, another tsunami occurred in the area, with the wave height once reaching 1.2 meters. Videos showed that the seawater surged into the villages on the shore, and some houses were flooded. Some local residents were forced to move to safe places at night. All Tongan government departments were closed that afternoon, and the geological department called on people to avoid going out and protect water storage devices.

According to The Paper citing foreign media reports, Fiji , 800 kilometers away from the volcano, also heard the loud sound of the volcanic eruption. The Fiji government has advised residents in low-lying coastal areas to evacuate urgently. At the same time, New Zealand's National Emergency Management Agency also issued a warning on the 15th that the northern and eastern coastal areas may be hit by huge waves. New Zealand The military said that they are paying close attention to the development of the situation and are on standby at any time.

National communications in Tonga are interrupted

According to the " New Zealand Herald " just reported that due to the volcanic eruption, communications throughout Tonga have been interrupted. New Zealand Prime Minister Ardern said today that New Zealand authorities are working hard to get in touch with Tonga, but Due to the seriousness of the disaster, it is difficult to carry out assessment work, and it is not yet possible to estimate the local casualties and property losses.

A submarine volcano erupted in Tonga, a Pacific island nation adjacent to New Zealand, causing a tsunami in Nuku'alofa, the capital of Tonga. Fiji and Samoa also issued disaster warnings. New Zealand's National Emergency Management Agency issued a warning on the 15th that the country's eastern and northern coasts may be hit by huge waves, and the country's military is on standby at any time.

At a press conference on the 16th, Ardern told reporters present that the pictures of the disaster in Tonga she saw were "very worrying", but the disaster caused a nationwide communication interruption in Tonga, and the New Zealand authorities were working hard to get in touch with Tonga. .

In addition, the New Zealand Defense Force has been dispatching rescue aircraft and ships. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other agencies are trying to contact relevant departments in Tonga through various means, including private channels, and hope to know what kind of help New Zealand can provide to the local area. .

According to Reuters reported that since the tsunami swept through Tonga, at about 6:40 pm on the 15th, Tonga’s local Internet and telephone lines have experienced widespread failures, making it difficult for the 105,000 residents in the country to contact the outside world.As of press time, all parties are still unable to understand the extent of the tsunami's damage to various places, and can only study the local disaster through satellite images.

Experts predict that this round of volcanic eruptions may last for weeks or even months, and local people must remain vigilant.

Many countries issued tsunami warnings

On January 15, local time, after an undersea volcano erupted in Tonga, the National Weather Service issued a tsunami warning for the entire west coast of the United States.

Most of the Pacific Rim, including Japan, Fiji and other countries, as well as Hawaii, Alaska and the Pacific coast of the United States, have issued tsunami warnings. The US Geological Survey estimated that the eruption triggered an earthquake equivalent to a magnitude 5.8.

United Nations Secretary-General Guterres 15 issued a statement expressing concern about the tsunami and volcanic ash affecting Tonga, as well as the tsunami warnings issued by many countries. The statement also noted that the United Nations Office in the Pacific is closely monitoring the situation and stands ready to provide support as requested.

The United Nations website also stated that there were no reports of casualties or the extent of damage as Tonga's communications network was severely disrupted.

Tonga gets its internet via the submarine cable from Suva, Fiji, which may be damaged, according to Associated Press . Doug Madory, director of Internet analysis at cyber intelligence company Kentik, said all Internet connections to Tonga were down around 6:40 p.m. local time.

According to Kankan News, the first wave of tsunami has arrived in Japan, Australia, the United States and Chile and other places, causing seawater backflow and the destruction of homes. At present, communication is interrupted across the entire island of Tonga, and the disaster is the most serious.

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology issued a tsunami warning for all coastal areas of New South Wales, Queensland and some coastal areas of Victoria, and the highest wave height of 1.27 meters was observed in the Norfolk Islands.

According to CCTV News, at 0:15 local time on the 16th, about 11 hours after the Tonga submarine volcano erupted, the Japan Meteorological Agency issued a tsunami warning for the Amami Islands and Tokara Islands, saying that the tsunami height may be as high as 3 meters; at the same time, A tsunami warning was issued in the Pacific side of the Japanese archipelago, and it is expected that the tsunami may reach 1 meter high.

According to the latest report from Japan Broadcasting Association TV, from 10:52 local time on the 15th to 2:50 on the 16th, Kagoshima Prefecture , Ogasawara Islands, Iwate Prefecture , Kochi Prefecture , Fukushima Prefecture , Shizuoka Prefecture , Miyagi Prefecture , Hokkaido , Aichi Prefecture, Miyazaki Prefecture , Mie Prefecture, Ibaraki Prefecture and other places have observed tsunamis. Among them, a 1.2-meter-high tsunami was observed in Amami Oshima, Kagoshima Prefecture, a 1.1-meter-high tsunami was also observed in Iwate Prefecture, and tsunamis between 60 centimeters and 90 centimeters high were observed in other areas.

The Japan Meteorological Agency reminded in the tsunami warning, "The tsunami is reaching coastal areas, please evacuate immediately! The tsunami may come multiple times, and the waves may be higher than the waves. Do not be careless and continue to evacuate!"

The Japan Meteorological Agency has not received reports of casualties caused by the tsunami. Kochi Prefecture confirmed that three ships sank, but it was said that there were no people on board. Temporary shelters have been opened in areas affected by the tsunami.

According to the " Yomiuri Shimbun " report on the 16th, Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Fire Department announced that due to the impact of a large-scale volcanic eruption under the sea in Tonga, the Japan Meteorological Agency has issued continuous tsunami warnings. As of 7:30 local time on the 16th in Japan, there are a total of 8 prefectures and 55 cities, towns and villages in Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Chiba, Tokushima, Kochi, Miyazaki, and Kagoshima. , issued evacuation instructions to approximately 108,000 households and approximately 229,200 people. Among them, one person in Okinawa Prefecture fell and was slightly injured while evacuating.

In addition, the Chinese Consulate General in Osaka issued a message to remind Chinese citizens in Japan to avoid going to dangerous areas.

However, the latest news shows that at 2 pm local time on the 16th, the Japan Meteorological Agency has lifted the warning.

According to the latest monitoring results, the Tsunami Warning Center of the Ministry of Natural Resources of China detected tsunami waves in China's coastal waters in the early morning of the 16th. The maximum tsunami wave amplitude at Zhejiang Shipu Station was about 20 centimeters, and the tsunami wave amplitudes at other tide stations were less than 15 centimeters. This process did not cause disastrous impacts on China's coast.

Will the Tonga volcano eruption affect the global climate?

According to the analysis of Chinese weather enthusiasts, although the Tonga volcanic eruption is also strong, it is not enough to transport the huge amount of volcanic ash that affects the global climate into the stratosphere; the volcanic eruption is located in the southern hemisphere and has relatively little impact on the northern hemisphere. Therefore, the impact of this Tonga volcano eruption on the global climate, especially on the northern hemisphere, should be weaker than Pinatubo , let alone Tambora , and is unlikely to occur in the northern hemisphere. " no summer year ".

It is reported that Tonga has a population of approximately 104,000. The country consists of three major islands: Tongatapu, Vava'u, and Ha'apai, and small islands such as Ewa and Niua. There are a total of 173 islands, 36 of which are inhabited.

Hungaha'apa'i Island is part of the highly active Tonga-Kermadec Islands volcanic arc. The capital of Tonga is located 65 kilometers south of the volcanic eruption, and many places are said to have been covered in volcanic ash.

Shane Cronin, a volcanologist at the University of Auckland, pointed out that this eruption is one of the largest eruptions in Tonga in the past 30 years. "It spreads widely laterally and produces a lot of ash."

Cronin also said that research on historical eruptions of the same volcano shows that the current eruption may last for weeks or months.

He also reminded that Tongan people must remain alert to further volcanic eruptions, "especially tsunamis occurring within a short period of time, and should avoid low-lying areas."