‘Like a Shotgun’: Tongan Eruption Is Largest Ever Recorded

The eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano was so intense it reached beyond the Earth's stratosphere, into the mesosphere. (AFP)
The eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano was so intense it reached beyond the Earth's stratosphere, into the mesosphere. (AFP)
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‘Like a Shotgun’: Tongan Eruption Is Largest Ever Recorded

The eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano was so intense it reached beyond the Earth's stratosphere, into the mesosphere. (AFP)
The eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano was so intense it reached beyond the Earth's stratosphere, into the mesosphere. (AFP)

A deadly volcanic eruption near Tonga in January was the largest ever recorded with modern equipment, a New Zealand-led team of scientists revealed Monday.

The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano erupted underwater with a force equivalent to hundreds of atomic bombs, unleashing a 15-meter (50-foot) tsunami which demolished homes and killed at least three people on the Pacific island kingdom.

The natural disaster also damaged undersea communication cables, cutting Tonga off from the rest of the world for weeks and hampering efforts to help the victims.

A detailed study by New Zealand's national institute for water and atmospheric research shows the eruption blasted out almost 10 cubic kilometers of material -- equivalent to 2.6 million Olympic-sized swimming pools -- and fired debris more than 40 kilometers (25 miles) into the mesosphere, the level above the Earth's stratosphere.

"The eruption reached record heights, being the first we've ever seen to break through into the mesosphere," said marine geologist Kevin Mackay.

"It was like a shotgun blast directly into the sky."

The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai eruption rivals the infamous Krakatoa disaster which killed tens of thousands in Indonesia in 1883 before the invention of modern measuring equipment.

"While this eruption was large -- one of the biggest since Krakatoa -- the difference here is that it's an underwater volcano and it's also part of the reason we got such big tsunami waves," Mackay added.

The team of scientists have accounted for three-quarters of the material fired out by the Tongan eruption with the rest explained as debris scattered in the atmosphere.

Mackay said the plume is estimated to have contained nearly two cubic kilometers of particles which stayed in the atmosphere for "months, causing the stunning sunsets we saw" across the Pacific region as far away as New Zealand.

His team also discovered that the volcano's crater is now 700 meters deeper than it was.

The eruption's pyroclastic flows -- deadly currents of lava, volcanic ash and gases which reach temperatures of 1,000 degrees Centigrade (1,800 degrees Fahrenheit) and speeds of 700 kilometers per hour -- carried debris from the volcano along the sea floor at least 80 kilometers away.

"But the pyroclastic flows appear to extend beyond that, perhaps as far as 100 kilometers away," said the team's principal scientist Emily Lane.

"The sheer force of the flows is astonishing -- we saw deposits in valleys beyond the volcano, meaning they had enough power to flow uphill over huge ridges and then back down again."



Saudi Reef Launches Project to Boost Coffee Tree Productivity by 30%

Saudi Reef Launches Project to Boost Coffee Tree Productivity by 30%
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Saudi Reef Launches Project to Boost Coffee Tree Productivity by 30%

Saudi Reef Launches Project to Boost Coffee Tree Productivity by 30%

The Sustainable Agricultural Rural Development Program (Saudi Reef), in collaboration with the National Research and Development Center for Sustainable Agriculture (Estidamah), has launched an innovative project to enhance the production of coffee seedlings using tissue culture technology.

The project aims to increase the productivity of coffee trees by 30% and to plant some 50,000 seedlings by the end of 2025, SPA reported.

Saudi Reef Spokesperson Majid Al-Buraikan said the coffee tree tissue culture project has achieved several tangible results. These include the re-evaluation of 82 previously selected genetic patterns, which were consolidated into 12 genetic groups based on morphological similarities. The production of seedlings from cuttings of selected genetic types has also begun, with 1,000 cuttings planted to produce 1,000 traceable seedlings.

Al-Buraikan noted that disease-resistant and drought-tolerant varieties have been developed. Fourteen knowledge products have also been prepared, focusing on advanced techniques and good agricultural practices to improve coffee farms and enhance their productivity.

As part of the project, the technical review of the coffee cultivation guide has been completed, and a book on coffee resources has been prepared as a primary reference for coffee production and post-harvest operations management in the Kingdom.

Four study tours—both domestic and international—were also conducted, with over 109 farmers participating. These visits included experimental fields, demonstration farms, and cooperatives, allowing farmers to learn about modern practices and technologies and apply them to their farms.

Al-Buraikan pointed out that the initiative also included organizing workshops and scientific seminars to train and qualify farmers and stakeholders, covering more than 200 farmers, as well as participating in numerous international conferences, forums, and exhibitions related to the coffee sector to exchange expertise and stay up to date on industry developments.