On Saturday, January 15, the undersea Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano, located some 64 kilometers north of Tongan capital Nuku'alofa, erupted violently triggering tsunami warnings across the South Pacific and the US west coast, and causing strong waves and currents in many coastal areas.
It has brought heated discussions concerning how it may affect the global climate.
Tonga's government delivered its first official statement on Tuesday after a massive undersea volcano erupted and triggered a tsunami. The government warned that the country has been hit by an "unprecedented disaster."
A large number of homes were destroyed on the west side of Tonga's main island and many people were relocated to shelters. The damage was worse in the third biggest archipelago, which is closer to the volcano eruption, where entire homes were damaged by the tsunami. The exact number of casualties is still unknown.
Volcanic eruptions generally have a lasting effect on climate in the following one or two years with a 0.3-degree-Celsius cooling effect, said experts from the meteorological administration.
AFP reported that the Foreign Ministry of New Zealand said that it will take at least four weeks to repair Tonga's undersea cable. Reuters said the country may still be unable to establish external contact for weeks given the difficulty of repairing the cable.
The volcanic eruption has caused three deaths and several injuries with the whole country under a state of emergency.
The eruption will influence the trend of La Nina through the interaction between the atmosphere and the ocean. The ash has begun to spread westward, which raised people's alert to the associated extreme weather such as heavy rain, the expert said. Volcanic ash can also produce acid rain.
Source: globaltimes
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