Major Eruption of Undersea Volcano in Tonga

Still no footage from the ground in Tonga, but the New Zealand government is making occasional updates:
The capital Nuku'alofa suffered "significant" damage, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said, adding there had been no reports of injury or death but a full assessment was not yet possible with communication lines down.

"The tsunami has had a significant impact on the foreshore on the northern side of Nuku'alofa with boats and large boulders washed ashore," Ardern said after contact with the New Zealand embassy in Tonga.

"Nuku'alofa is covered in a thick film of volcanic dust but otherwise conditions are calm and stable."

Elsewhere in that same report, it states:

The US Geological Survey recorded Saturday's eruption as equivalent to a 5.8-magnitude earthquake at zero depth. [...]

The eruption was so powerful it was even heard in Alaska, the UAF Geophysical Institute tweeted, saying the fact it was audible was "fairly unique."

It cited Alaska Volcano Observatory scientists David Fee as recalling "only a couple other volcanic eruptions doing something like this" -- namely, the 19th-century eruption of Indonesia's Krakatau, and Alaska's Novarupta, the most powerful volcanic eruption of the 20th century.

The Fife weather station in Scotland tweeted it was "just incredible to think of the power that can send a shockwave around the world" after the eruptions produced a jump in its air pressure graph.

The death toll on Tonga's main island is now at three.
 
Haven't read this thread yet, but saw story elsewhere of the British woman and her dogs swept away by the tsunami - tragic. Her husband managed to hold onto a limb and not drown.

Now I've come across this - a TikTok post that has a vid showing a white object plunging down to the ocean, a splash, and then about 5 seconds later, the massive explosion occurs:

Was the Tonga Volcano eruption triggered by a meteorite?

Now that raises all kinds of questions assuming it's a legit vid - and from where did the aerial vid originate - from a plane - a satellite - the space station? No other info that I can see.
 
Haven't read this thread yet, but saw story elsewhere of the British woman and her dogs swept away by the tsunami - tragic. Her husband managed to hold onto a limb and not drown.

Now I've come across this - a TikTok post that has a vid showing a white object plunging down to the ocean, a splash, and then about 5 seconds later, the massive explosion occurs:

Was the Tonga Volcano eruption triggered by a meteorite?

Now that raises all kinds of questions assuming it's a legit vid - and from where did the aerial vid originate - from a plane - a satellite - the space station? No other info that I can see.

Very interesting image but as you wrote where did they come from.

In this video, you can see at 13 sec. and 18 sec. what look like a small explosion before the huge explosion.

In this one you can hear two small explosion before the huge detonation.

 
GeologyHub has a solid explanation of what likely happened: a powerful 'steam explosion'. An earlier, more 'normal', eruption led to seawater flooding into the magma chamber, which then boiled, pressurized, and... KABOOM!

@XPan, this video also gives a timeline for when the caldera grew, partially disappeared, then fully disappeared.

 
Haven't read this thread yet, but saw story elsewhere of the British woman and her dogs swept away by the tsunami - tragic. Her husband managed to hold onto a limb and not drown.

Now I've come across this - a TikTok post that has a vid showing a white object plunging down to the ocean, a splash, and then about 5 seconds later, the massive explosion occurs:

Was the Tonga Volcano eruption triggered by a meteorite?

Now that raises all kinds of questions assuming it's a legit vid - and from where did the aerial vid originate - from a plane - a satellite - the space station? No other info that I can see.
I thought about it yesterday.

What if the explosion was caused by an asteroid?
 

Tonga volcano erupted with force of more than 600 Hiroshima bombs


The undersea volcano near the island nation of Tonga erupted on Saturday with an explosive force that was more than 600 times as powerful as the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, according to scientists and reports.

James Garvin, the chief scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, told NPR that they came up “with a number that’s around 10 megatons of TNT equivalent.”

That means the volcano blast was equal to the force of more than 650 “Little Boy” atomic bombs, one of which was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan in 1945 during WWII and had an estimated force of 15,000 tons of TNT.


The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano erupted with a blast heard thousands of miles away in New Zealand and Alaska. It also produced a giant mushroom cloud in the sky and sent tsunami waves across the Pacific.

Scientists say it was likely one of the world’s biggest eruptions in the past 30 years and probably one of the loudest events to occur on Earth in over a century.

“This might be the loudest eruption since [the eruption of the Indonesian volcano] Krakatau in 1883,”
Michael Poland, a geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey told the outlet.

The blast was so large because the magma inside the volcano was under enormous pressure and had gasses trapped within it, with a fracture in the rock likely causing a sudden drop in pressure, according to Shane Cronin, a volcanology professor at the University of Auckland.

The crater also sat roughly 650 feet below the sea surface, at the right depth that could create a big explosion when seawater pours into the volcano and turns it into steam, Cronin added.

While the eruption on Saturday was explosive, it was also relatively brief, lasting only about 10 minutes. Other big eruptions can sometimes continue for hours, the Associated Press reported.

Tonga appears to have avoided widespread disaster, despite sitting nearly at the top of the volcano. However, dozens of homes were destroyed and authorities reported at least three deaths on Wednesday.

Garvin told NPR that a volcanic explosion of that size shouldn’t be expected in the near future.

“If the past precedent for volcanic eruptions in this kind of setting has any meaning at all,” Garvin said, “then we won’t have another one of these explosions for a while.”
 
The blast was so large because the magma inside the volcano was under enormous pressure and had gasses trapped within it, with a fracture in the rock likely causing a sudden drop in pressure, according to Shane Cronin, a volcanology professor at the University of Auckland.

The crater also sat roughly 650 feet below the sea surface, at the right depth that could create a big explosion when seawater pours into the volcano and turns it into steam, Cronin added.

Let not jump to conclusion but let not dismiss any possibility. What would be the motive to blow up a volcano in some insignifiant Island in the pacific. Insignifiant for most but not so for a few.

This devastated South Pacific nation sits on a geographical fault line, and a geopolitical one

This devastated South Pacific nation sits on a geographical fault line, and a geopolitical one​


Tom Fowdy
Tom Fowdy
is a British writer and analyst of politics and international relations with a primary focus on East Asia.
This devastated South Pacific nation sits on a geographical fault line, and a geopolitical one

FILE PHOTO. © Getty Images / Dana Stephenson
Tonga, a tiny Polynesian island nation located deep in the South Pacific, has been struck by a devastating volcanic eruption which subsequently triggered tsunamis.
Damage to this small archipelago, home to little more than 105,000 people, has been extensive. The event destroyed its internet cable to the outside world, flattened all of the houses on an entire island, and polluted its water supply with volcanic ash, causing a humanitarian crisis. A number of countries have quickly offered support, including China, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. But that response tells us an unspoken story.
Tonga does not just sit on a fault line in the Earth’s crust, but a geopolitical one, too. The disaster has occurred right in the middle of an ongoing struggle for influence across the Pacific between China and its opponents, and the eruption poses deeper questions, such as: ‘Which country should rebuild Tonga?’ and ‘What are the implications of this?’ It should be obvious already that irrespective of humanitarian questions and needs, some countries are acting on the premise they don’t want to give Beijing any more clout than it already has in Tonga.
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‘Worst ecological disaster’ triggered by Hunga Tonga volcano off Peru coast

The Pacific is the central stage of America’s competition against China. Framing its policy as a ‘free and open Indo-Pacific’, Washington’s long-term strategic goal is to contain the rise of Beijing by cementing American hegemony, ideology, and military supremacy across the region, which spans from the east coast of Africa to California.
In doing so, the US has enlisted a number of key partners, including Australia and Japan, to support its objectives on the premise of aligned interests. These countries are pursuing a scramble for influence against Beijing in all nations across this space. The island nations spread out across the Pacific may be small, but are nonetheless perceived as strategically important as they represent ‘stepping stones’ that contribute significantly to the balance of power.
This competition has been playing out for a number of years. In 2019, China opened up diplomatic ties with the Solomon Islands and Kiribati, getting them to dump Taiwan in the process. The US – which accuses Beijing of seeking to build military bases there – and Taiwan responded by shoring up influence in an anti-China province of the islands, leading to riots and an unsuccessful attempt to topple the government. Meanwhile, Australia’s government had their primary phone company, Telstra, acquire the biggest Pacific telephone operator, Digicel, with the goal of keeping China out. Beijing is also making its own moves, such as hosting summits of Pacific Island leaders.
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Prior to the disaster, Tonga had courted China as a close partner, which has invested millions in building its infrastructure at an affordable rate. For Beijing, Tonga’s very small size and population allows it to be extraordinarily generous in what it can offer, providing small projects that proportionally go a long way. However, not all are happy about this. Described as “the somewhat sleepy backyard of Australia, New Zealand and the United States,” it is a nation which the West’s hegemony over has long been taken for granted, but is now being challenged. The reaction to this is similar to how the British media has depicted China’s relationship with Barbados, prompting hysteria that Beijing is ‘buying’ or ‘taking over the island’.
This has led to a strategic determination that the US and its allies ought to compete with China for the allegiance of the Polynesian nation. Australia, in particular, has long taken a hegemonic attitude over Pacific Island countries, an elitist outlook extending from colonial times and their belief they are defending them from ‘the Yellow Peril’. This is one reason why these island nations like China as an alternative partner. While Beijing does not appear to have any military or ideological ambitions for Tonga, it nonetheless sees its ties with these nations as important strategic pieces in order to prevent its own encirclement in the region.
As a result, the response to the disaster in Tonga is far more political than meets the eye. While there is a natural inclination to give humanitarian aid as a moral imperative, underneath the surface there is a geopolitical imperative to compete over the question of who rebuilds and assists the islands, with the US and its allies fearing the expansion of Chinese influence. With infrastructure being completely destroyed, we aren’t just talking about essentials such as food and water, it’s also about who gives financial assistance, who rebuilds homes, roads, bridges, schools, communications infrastructure, and so on.
Japan issues tsunami warning after major volcanic eruption
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The US fears that leaving all of this to Beijing will be to their geopolitical detriment. This has turned the aid process into a politicized contest. New Zealand and Australia have delivered aid, but so has China. Xi Jinping personally sent condolences to Tonga’s king and personally pledged support, describing the two as “strategic partners.” The US is also offering aid. To show their military prowess and dominance over what they deem to be their backyard, New Zealand and Australia also sent surveillance planes and warships to investigate the disaster.
The real heat here is not just the damage done by the volcano, but the struggle for the heart of the geopolitical future of Tonga and ultimately how a tiny island nation has become a flashpoint in the struggle for who will dominate the Pacific. Tonga may not be a nation of economic significance, but its place on the map matters. Hopefully, the rush to throw aid at it from all sides can ultimately be a net positive in helping it recover faster and enjoy the best of both worlds. It doesn’t need to exclude any party when benefits are on the table.



I will dismiss if this video is real ; the cosmic nature of an impactor, I don't believe in coincidence, but will tend to think of a missile that would do the job nicelly. It doesn't take a nuke to fracture a thin layer of rock to trigger an explosion.

Just food for the thought
 
In this post, I attempted to take a closer look at the story about a white spot, seen moving near the volcano prior to explosion. There are a few screenshots. I can't see if it is real, but at least it is not obviously fake. Unfortunately, I think we must accept that there is not going to be much attention to the possibility of this being real. Most public videos are focused on the spread of the cloud, like these:
Hunga Tonga volcano eruption in 4K UHD with Shock Wave propagation
iGadgetPro
Hunga Tonga volcano erupts again, triggers tsunami - Seen from space!
VideoFromSpace
Or should one just be more curious, because there are companies that sell fresh satellite image, like this: EOS LandViewer: Browse Real-Time Earth Observation


Now I've come across this - a TikTok post that has a vid showing a white object plunging down to the ocean, a splash, and then about 5 seconds later, the massive explosion occurs:

Was the Tonga Volcano eruption triggered by a meteorite?

Now that raises all kinds of questions assuming it's a legit vid - and from where did the aerial vid originate - from a plane - a satellite - the space station? No other info that I can see.
I did not see your post but found:
I found this short clip on bit chute (Cypher) but I don't know how to link it:

TONGA - MYSTERIOUS WHITE OBJECT?​

The link is Tonga - Mysterious White Object?
And there is more on the same story on Twitter if you look:
Then I saw it was a TikTok from SunnyRed55, and found the message: The is from January 17.

Here is a Tweet from January 18 with a compilation of images that also mention it. And you can find the same story in this video
CAN YOU SEE IT?! Mysterious White Projectile Caught Hitting Sea Before Tonga Explosion! Seen & Heard from Signs & Wonders of End Times
Here are a few screenshots. I wonder, how many frames per second this film was taken with in reality. The first shows the white dot to the right.
Screenshot 2022-01-22 181400.png
The second shows the white dot to the left.
Screenshot 2022-01-22 181314.png
Then there is something coming up from the water where the white object disappeared. He calls it a splash.
Screenshot 2022-01-22 183139.png
That white cloud goes down, he says it goes into the ocean, but how do we know? It could be just a first release of steam that is not related with the white object. Just because two events follow close after each other, does not always mean a cause and effect is guaranteed.
Screenshot 2022-01-22 183306.png
And then comes the real explosion:
Screenshot 2022-01-22 184225.png
Questions
Is it a UFO, Computer-generated imagery, a weapon of some sort, or a fireball?
If a fireball has a lot of electric charge, could it affect a volcano?
And if a meteorite hits close to a magma chamber, might it explode?
One could even ask if some meteorites could be attracted to volcanoes under certain circumstances?
If an area is close to exploding, there might be a lot of tension stored in the earth. Could this interact with the Cosmos and attract a means of release. Or one could ask if some major eruptions have been facilitated by fireballs?
What speaks against the idea of a fireball on the video is that on the video we hear no rumble in the sky as a result of impact, or is that the sharp sound at the beginning, because there is more than one explosion, but is that due to echo and local circumstances?
 
In this post, I attempted to take a closer look at the story about a white spot, seen moving near the volcano prior to explosion. There are a few screenshots. I can't see if it is real, but at least it is not obviously fake. Unfortunately, I think we must accept that there is not going to be much attention to the possibility of this being real. Most public videos are focused on the spread of the cloud, like these:
Hunga Tonga volcano eruption in 4K UHD with Shock Wave propagation
iGadgetPro
Hunga Tonga volcano erupts again, triggers tsunami - Seen from space!
VideoFromSpace
Or should one just be more curious, because there are companies that sell fresh satellite image, like this: EOS LandViewer: Browse Real-Time Earth Observation



I did not see your post but found:

The link is Tonga - Mysterious White Object?
And there is more on the same story on Twitter if you look:
Then I saw it was a TikTok from SunnyRed55, and found the message: The is from January 17.

Here is a Tweet from January 18 with a compilation of images that also mention it. And you can find the same story in this video
CAN YOU SEE IT?! Mysterious White Projectile Caught Hitting Sea Before Tonga Explosion! Seen & Heard from Signs & Wonders of End Times
Here are a few screenshots. I wonder, how many frames per second this film was taken with in reality. The first shows the white dot to the right.
View attachment 53912
The second shows the white dot to the left.
View attachment 53913
Then there is something coming up from the water where the white object disappeared. He calls it a splash.
View attachment 53914
That white cloud goes down, he says it goes into the ocean, but how do we know? It could be just a first release of steam that is not related with the white object. Just because two events follow close after each other, does not always mean a cause and effect is guaranteed.
View attachment 53915
And then comes the real explosion:
View attachment 53916
Questions
Is it a UFO, Computer-generated imagery, a weapon of some sort, or a fireball?
If a fireball has a lot of electric charge, could it affect a volcano?
And if a meteorite hits close to a magma chamber, might it explode?
One could even ask if some meteorites could be attracted to volcanoes under certain circumstances?
If an area is close to exploding, there might be a lot of tension stored in the earth. Could this interact with the Cosmos and attract a means of release. Or one could ask if some major eruptions have been facilitated by fireballs?
What speaks against the idea of a fireball on the video is that on the video we hear no rumble in the sky as a result of impact, or is that the sharp sound at the beginning, because there is more than one explosion, but is that due to echo and local circumstances?
I'm pretty sure that a meteorite did not detonate the Tonga volcano, or otherwise cause the eruption. It's not seen on any of footage of the eruption, as recorded from multiple angles from space. This grainy footage is likely manipulated. If there is something there, let's see it pointed out on the original footage.
 
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I'm pretty sure that a meteorite did not detonate the Tonga volcano, or otherwise cause the eruption. It's not seen on any of footage of the eruption, as recorded from multiple angles from space. This grainy footage is likely manipulated. If there is something there, let's see it pointed out on the original footage.
I attempted then to take a different angle, which of course I could have done from the beginning.

First, I checked the list of suspected bolides on Bolides. There were two on January 15, but not near that location. I then checked if the area 20.550°S 175.385°W would at all be within the reach, and it ought to be, as I found one event at 177 W on January 1st. Since there were no reports from the location, then it would have been minor, and if it was a fireball it would probably not have been white like a cloud or some airplane.

Then I checked how a fireball would have looked from space, and that is more difficult because the time-lapses typically shown might not see much of a meteor travelling at say 15 km/s.
But sometimes they still do, here is a one-second time-lapse from the Space Station
A meteoroid as seen from the Space Station… make a wish! The meteoroid appears between second 7 and 8, but it is very short, and it is yellow, bright white colored. Had it been a five or ten second time-lapse, there might not have been anything.

Then I tried to see what normal speed might look like from space: Total Solar Eclipse 2017 seen from the International Space Station There is no meteoroid, but it gives an idea of the pace.

So it could be a UFO or an "unidentified object in a video", which does not exclude fraud.
 
Actually, what I see when I look at that 'white spot' footage is an early, small, explosive uprush of water, like a mini-pre-eruption. It's not something that moves across, it simply appears in the spot, disappears, and then the big eruption. So it's like a small burp of the volcano before the big one.
 
I remember the C'S answering our question on Haiti, "the U.S. was sending a message". I don't think it's a stretch to think that Russia / China gave the west a back at cha response especially seeing how short lived the volcano activity has been. Legitimate earth changes coupled with human tinkering, good question?
 
No, I think this was a natural event though one can infer it was caused by general human ignorance of truths therefore indirectly man-made. What we are seeing now is the cointelpro and/or plugged-in useless idiots coming up with theories to muddy the waters. Sometimes certain people like doing this to feel good about themselves and have a bit of fan following ie they project and start “pining for the fjords”!
 
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