Scientists have done further research into a huge volcanic explosion that ripped through part of Tonga early last year.
They have found the magnitude was equivalent to the most powerful nuclear device ever detonated by the United States.
Scientists have used eyewitness accounts, along with data from tide gauges, satellites and other sources, to analyze the eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano.
Their results were published in the April issue of the journal Science Advances.
The eruption was felt around the world and likely involved five blasts.
The last of them released energy equivalent to about 15 megatons of TNT.
That’s around 1,000 times more powerful than the bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima in 1945, putting the volcanic event on a par with the most powerful nuclear device ever detonated by the U.S. the Castle Bravo bomb detonated at Bikini Atoll in 1954.
The Guardian reported that researchers based in the U.S. and New Zealand say the eruption occurred 40 miles from the country’s main island.
Huge volcanic plumes shot into the stratosphere. They triggered explosions of steam, which caused sonic booms, the main cause of the resulting tsunami.
It’s estimated that six people died as a result of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcanic event, including four people in Tonga. Two people in Peru drowned as a result of the tsunami.
The new study follows research published last year that revealed the Tonga volcano eruption had the highest plume ever recorded, with an ash cloud that reached 35 miles in height.
