There are more than 1,300 active volcanoes on the planet. Some erupt continuously for many years, while others erupt suddenly with little to no warning. On Jan. 15, 2022, the world was largely caught off guard with the world's most violent volcanic eruption ever recorded with modern instruments. It occurred in Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai (HUNG-ah TONG-ah-HUNG-ah ha-AHpie), Tonga, in the South Pacific.
But HT-HH, as it's now sometimes called, hadn't really come out of nowhere. This submarine volcano had erupted out of the ocean back in January 2015, creating a new island. The volcano was located 65 kilometers (40 miles) north of Tonga's capital, Nuku'alofa, and joined together two small uninhabited islands called Hunga Tonga and Hunga Ha'apai. That's where the volcano's full name came from. After the 2022 eruption, small pieces of those two islands are the only parts of the volcano that remain above the water.
Though these islands reach only 374 feet (114 meters) above the sea, Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai is huge. Rising from the seafloor, it measures 1.1 mile (1.8 km) high and 12.4 miles (20 km) wide. The underwater mountain is part of a sweeping arc of volcanoes that form the Tongan part of the Pacific "Ring of Fire."
Volcanic Awakening
Between 2015 and 2021, the volcano erupted occasionally. But these events were considered relatively mild. "They were the kind of eruptions that you could be within a few miles of and still be considered safe," says Kevin Mackay. He is a marine geologist at the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) in New Zealand. "There was nothing that would lead us to think a major eruption could even happen," Mackay adds.
この記事は Muse Science Magazine for Kids の October 2023 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は Muse Science Magazine for Kids の October 2023 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
Who's Your Cousin?
The great apes are among the most popular animals in most zoos. Their actions, facial expressions, and family life remind us so much of ourselves. Have you ever wondered, though, how we might look to them?
Is it possible to die of boredom?
To figure out if we can die of boredom, we first have to understand what boredom is. For help, we called James Danckert, a psychologist who studies boredom at the University of Waterloo in Canada.
THE PROBLEM WITH PALM OIL
Palm oil is all around you. It’s in sugary snacks like cookies and candy bars. It’s in lipstick and shampoo and pet food.
SERGE WICH
Serge Wich’s favorite days at work are spent out in the forest, studying orangutans in Sumatra and Borneo or chimpanzees in Tanzania.
ELODIE FREYMANN
When you’re feeling sick, it probably doesn’t occur to you to try eating tree bark.
Guardians of the Forest
EARLY, MAKESHIFT WILDLIFE DRONES HELPED TO DETECT AND PROTECT ORANGUTANS.
APE ANTICS
The Whirling World of primate play
Dr. Ape Will See You Now
HUMANS AREN’T THE ONLY PRIMATES THAT USE MEDICATION.
THE LEFT OVERS
A lot has happened for modern humans to get to this point. We lost most of our hair, learned how to make tools, established civilizations, sent a person to the Moon, and invented artificial intelligence. Whew! With all of these changes, our bodies have changed, too. It’s only taken us about six million years.
SO, WHAT IS A PRIMATE?
What do you have in common with the aye-aye, sifaka, siamang, and potto? If you said your collarbone, you re probably a primatologist—a person who studies primates. If you’re not, read on.
