{"id":44252,"date":"2022-01-15T22:59:00","date_gmt":"2022-01-15T22:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cimss.ssec.wisc.edu\/satellite-blog\/?p=44252"},"modified":"2023-05-11T02:31:18","modified_gmt":"2023-05-11T02:31:18","slug":"explosive-eruption-of-hunga-tonga-volcano","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cimss.ssec.wisc.edu\/satellite-blog\/archives\/44252","title":{"rendered":"Explosive eruption of the Hunga Tonga\u2013Hunga Ha`apai volcano"},"content":{"rendered":"
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JMA Himawari-8 True Color RGB images [click to play animated GIF | MP4<\/strong><\/a>]<\/p><\/div>\n

JMA<\/strong><\/a> Himawari-8 True Color RGB images created using Geo2Grid<\/strong><\/a> (above)<\/strong><\/em> showed the rapid expansion of a volcanic cloud following an explosive eruption of Hunga Tonga\u2013Hunga Ha`apai<\/strong><\/a> on 15 January 2022. An abrupt shock wave was also evident, which propagated radially outward in all directions.<\/p>\n

The volcanic cloud also exhibited a striking appearance in GOES-17 (GOES-West)<\/em> “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 \u00b5m<\/strong><\/a>) images (below)<\/strong><\/em>, with a pronounced arc of cloud-top gravity waves along its eastern edge as the bulk of the cloud material drifted westward. Pulsing concentric shock waves were also seen in the infrared imagery.<\/p>\n

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GOES-17 “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 \u00b5m) images (credit: Tim Schmit, NOAA\/NESDIS\/ASPB) [click to play animated GIF | MP4<\/strong><\/a>]<\/p><\/div>\n

The explosive nature of the eruption could be seen by examining 10-minute GOES-17 Visible and Infrared images\u00a0 during the first 30 minutes (below)<\/strong><\/em> — only 20 minutes after the 0400 UTC eruption onset, the infrared cloud-top brightness temperature had already cooled to -100\u00baC (placing it in the lower stratosphere).\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n

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GOES-17 “Red” Visible (0.64 \u00b5m, left) and “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 \u00b5m, right) images [click to play animated GIF | MP4<\/strong><\/a>]<\/p><\/div>\n

Beginning at 0705 UTC, a GOES-17 Mesoscale Domain Sector was positioned over the region, providing imagery at 1-minute intervals — Infrared images during the period 0705-1200 UTC are shown below. The crescent-shaped area of “bow shock wave” ripples persisted, due to the robust and dense volcanic cloud acting as an obstacle to the easterly winds within the stratosphere.\u00a0 The 1-minute imaging was also able to capture the brief pulse of an overshooting top which exhibited an infrared brightness temperature of -105.18\u00baC at 0841 UTC<\/strong><\/a> (zoomed-in animation: GIF<\/strong><\/a> | MP4<\/strong><\/a>) — which could be a record cold cloud-top temperature, as sensed from a geostationary satellite (see this blog post<\/strong><\/a>).\u00a0<\/p>\n

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GOES-17 “Clean” Infrared Window (10.35 \u00b5m) images [click to play animated GIF | MP4<\/strong><\/a>]<\/p><\/div>\n

A plot of 1-minute GOES-17 overshooting top infrared brightness temperatures (IRBTs) along with 10-minute Full Disk GOES-17 and Himawari-8 IRBTs (below)<\/strong><\/em> showed that the brief cold 0841 UTC overshooting top (and its rapid collapse) occurred between the times of routine 10-minute Full Disk scans — highlighting the value of rapid scan 1-minute imagery.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Plot of 1-minute GOES-17 overshooting top infrared brightness temperatures (IRBTs), along with 10-minute Full Disk GOES-17 and Himawari-8 IRBTs [click to enlarge]<\/p><\/div>\n

VIIRS Infrared Window (11.45 \u00b5m) images from NOAA-20 and Suomi-NPP, viewed using RealEarth<\/strong><\/a> (below),<\/strong><\/em> also showed the region of cloud-top gravity waves (with minimal parallax<\/strong><\/a> compared to GOES-17) . \u00a0<\/p>\n

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VIIRS Infrared Window (11.45 \u00b5m) images from NOAA-20 and Suomi-NPP [click to enlarge]<\/p><\/div>\n

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Plot of 00 UTC rawinsonde data from Nandi, Fuji [click to enlarge]<\/p><\/div>\n

Satellite-based lidar and limb sounder data indicated that the volcanic cloud reached maximum altitudes around 30-32 km — well into the lower stratosphere, where easterly winds existed according to 00 UTC rawinsonde data<\/strong><\/a> from Nandi, Fiji (above)<\/strong><\/em>. The westward drift of most of the volcanic cloud as seen in a Suomi-NPP VIIRS Day\/Night Band (0.7 \u00b5m) image (below)<\/strong><\/em> lined up well with wind barbs at 30 hPa (an altitude of 23.78 km on the Nandi NFFN sounding).\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Suomi-NPP VIIRS Day\/Night Band (0.7 \u00b5m) image, with 30 hPa wind barbs plotted in violet and rawinsonde sites plotted in yellow [click to enlarge]<\/p><\/div>\n

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GOES-17 Mid-level Water Vapor (6.9 \u00b5m) Time Difference images (credit: Tim Schmit, NOAA\/NESDIS\/ASPB) [click to play animated GIF | MP4<\/strong><\/a>]<\/p><\/div>\n

Propagation of the volcanic shock wave across the Pacific Ocean could be followed in GOES-17 (GOES-West)<\/em> Mid-level Water Vapor (6.9 \u00b5m<\/strong><\/a>) Time Difference images (above)<\/strong><\/em>. As the shock wave continued to propagate farther eastward across North\/South America and then the Atlantic Ocean, the wave front could be seen in GOES-16 (GOES-East)<\/em> Water Vapor Time Difference images (below)<\/strong><\/em>. As the shock wave moved across southern Wisconsin, a brief rise\/fall couplet in surface air pressure just prior to 1500 UTC (9:00 am CDT) was evident in plots from the University of Wisconsin – Madison’s Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Sciences<\/strong><\/a> building rooftop tower<\/strong><\/a> (as well as the personal weather station<\/strong><\/a> of the author of this blog post).<\/p>\n

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GOES-16 Mid-level Water Vapor (6.9 \u00b5m) Time Difference images (credit: Tim Schmit, NOAA\/NESDIS\/ASPB) [click to play animated GIF | MP4<\/strong><\/a>]<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n

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Pseudo-color visible view of the wave front from the #TongaVolcano<\/a>

Full res here – https:\/\/t.co\/LXl27Vgpfq<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/HftEpVYkVS<\/a><\/p>— UW Atmos\/Ocean Sci (@UW_AOS) January 15, 2022<\/a><\/blockquote>