The Youngest Island on Earth, Pt. 2A few weeks ago, we listed some of Earth’s newest islands born vi
The Youngest Island on Earth, Pt. 2A few weeks ago, we listed some of Earth’s newest islands born via volcanic eruption (http://bit.ly/1xlnI85). Well, now we’ve got another to add to our list: Hunga Ha’api just popped up in the Pacific.On December 20, the Hunga Ha’api volcano began erupting offshore from Tonga. The eruption continued through January and the originally subsea volcano has now amassed an island 1 km wide, 2 km long, and 100 m high around its vent.There have also been some other notable side effects of this eruption: Hunga Ha’api sent a mixture of ash and steam about 9 km (30,000 feet) into the air, halting flights in and out of the area and temporarily stranding a few tourists. The eruption also delivered an influx of nutrients, such as iron, into the water, causing a sudden, rapid growth of algae. In this case, the algae are red, giving the water nearby a “blood red” appearance.-CMFor more information on Hunga Ha'api:http://bit.ly/1AxRG9UPhoto credit: http://ab.co/1xloiTg -- source link
#island#volcano#tonga#nature#pacific#ocean#science#eruption#geology#steam#new zealand#algae