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Tonga Volcano

  • Posted By
    10Pointer
  • Categories
    Science & Technology
  • Published
    25th Aug, 2022

Context

Recently, the experts said that the Tonga volcano wave was 9 times taller than the tsunami in Japan.


Key-points

  • The initial tsunami wave created by Tonga’s underwater Hunga Tonga volcano eruption in 2022 was 90 metres high.
  • It was nine times higher than the tsunami recorded near Japan in 2011.
  • The volcano is located approximately 70 km from the Tongan capital Nuku'alofa; this distance significantly minimizes its destructive power. 
  • The Tonga volcano eruption unleashed more energy than the Tsar Bomba, the most powerful nuclear device ever detonated. 

About Tonga

  • It is a Polynesian country and also an archipelago consisting of 171 islands of which 45 are inhabited.
  • Located in Oceania, Tonga is an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean. 
  • It is surrounded by-
    • Fiji and Wallis and Futuna (France) to the northwest
    • Samoa to the northeast
    • New Caledonia (France)
    • Vanuatu to the west
    • Niue (the nearest foreign territory) to the east
    • Kermadec (New Zealand) to the southwest
  • Tonga has a tropical rainforest climate. 

Significance of the recent findings 

  • Disaster management: The eruption should serve as a wake-up call for organisations working to safeguard people from such disasters in the future.
  • Monitoring of volcanic activity should be organised: More high-quality research into volcanic eruptions is always a good idea.
  • It is important to have efficient warning systems: which include both real time warnings and education on what to do in case of a tsunami or warning such systems save lives.  

 

Verifying, please be patient.

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