TONGA (Commonwealth Union)_ A new island, or “baby”, has been discovered in the middle of the ocean hours after an undersea volcano near Australia erupted. The Central Tonga Islands’ undersea Home Reef volcano first erupted earlier this month, and within a few hours, the newest land mass on Earth had emerged.
The island was formed when lava from the volcano flowed for several days while being cooled by the ocean.
Scientists from Tonga Geological Services assessed the island to be 4000 square metres in size and 10 metres above sea level on September 14, but by September 20, it had grown to 24,000 square metres. Since September 10 until at least last Friday, September 23, the eruption has been active, according to Tonga Geological Services, which also stated on Facebook that there are “minimal threats to the Aviation Community and the residents of (adjacent island groups) Vava’u and Ha’apai.”
“No visible ash in the last 24 hours was recorded,” the post read. “Until notice, all mariners are encouraged to sail beyond 4 kilometres from Home Reef.”
However, the infant island could not be permanent, according to NASA Earth Observatory. The agency’s Earth Observatory provided an update on the new island and noted that while they can last for years, islands formed by undersea volcanoes are frequently transient.
There have been four reported eruption cycles at Home Reef, including occurrences in 1852 and 1857. Both eruptions in 1984 and 2006 produced ephemeral islands with cliffs that were 50 to 70 meters high. Both instances were followed by the temporary construction of small islands. While the island created by the same volcano in 1995 endured for 25 years, the island created by the nearby Late’iki Volcano’s 12-day eruption in 2020 washed away within two months.
The highest concentration of underwater volcanoes in the world is located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, according to NASA Earth Observatory, along a sea floor ridge that runs from New Zealand to Tonga.
The Tonga-Kermadec subduction zone, where three tectonic plates “are clashing at the fastest converging border in the world”, is where Home Reef is located, according to the report. The Pacific Plate is colliding with two smaller plates in this location, creating one of the deepest pits and most active volcanic arcs on Earth.
