The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano in Tonga on January 15th produced a large and destructive tsunami through a new volcanic eruption. This tsunami occurred due to partial edifice collapse, which destroyed the vast majority of the existing island. We now know the size of the explosion which occurred, and it is one of the largest on record. Also, the tsunami waves were much higher than previously reported, especially along the western coastline of Tongatapu. This video will separate fact from fiction, and discuss the eruption, what its true magnitude is, and what might happen next at Hunga Tonga. It is a very famous volcano as it has produced several spectacular island forming eruptions in the 21st century.

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Volcanic ash advisory center:
http://vaac.metservice.com/
For information on potential ash advisories of this volcano, select the Wellington center.

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0:00 Hunga Tonga Volcano Erupts
0:24 Tsunami was Higher than Thought
0:55 Size of the Explosion
1:16 Why the Eruption Occurred
2:53 A Very Short Eruption
3:25 Ash Poses a Risk to Health
Google Earth imagery used in this video: ©Google

Satellite Video/Photo Credit: NOAA, NASA, GOES WEST 17, Public Domain & Japan Meteorological Agency, CC BY 4.0-I

Thumbnail Photo Credit: NOAA, Colorized with Hotspot.ai commercial credits