New Research Reveals Underwater Sounds Could Warn of Tsunamis
A recent study highlights how underwater 'booms' from volcanic eruptions can serve as early warning signals for tsunamis.
The 2022 Hunga eruption generated tsunamis from both explosions and caldera collapse.
Underwater sounds, or T-waves, can travel vast distances, providing crucial tsunami warnings.
Data from a telecommunications tower helped confirm the timing of the tsunami's arrival.
In January 2022, the Hunga volcano in Tonga erupted dramatically, sending ash and pressure waves globally and resulting in devastating tsunamis that affected the region. This eruption not only caused significant destruction, including the loss of lives, but also revealed critical insights into how tsunamis can be generated from different volcanic activities. The initial tsunamis were triggered by explosive eruptions, while a later, more catastrophic wave was caused by the collapse of the volcano's caldera.
Research indicates that the largest tsunami, which struck islands near Hunga, was not a direct result of another explosion but rather the sudden collapse of the volcano itself. This collapse produced a powerful underwater sound that could be detected thousands of kilometers away, suggesting a potential new method for tsunami warning systems. Monitoring underwater volcanoes has historically been challenging, with limited data available about their activity and eruption responses.
Traditional monitoring methods, such as satellites and seismometers, have limitations, especially in detecting tsunami threats. For instance, the closest seismometer to Hunga was located 750 kilometers away in Fiji, making it difficult to capture accurate seismic signals. However, researchers turned to underwater acoustics, which can transmit sound efficiently over long distances. During the eruption, they analyzed data from 14 seismic stations, some as far as 2,600 kilometers from the volcano, to detect submarine landslide flows and the significant T-wave generated by the caldera collapse.
The collapse of Hunga's caldera, which occurred around 6:28 PM Tonga time, produced a T-wave that was recorded at multiple stations across the Pacific. This event was not effectively captured by conventional seismic monitoring but was clearly detected underwater. The subsequent tsunami, which devastated parts of Tonga, was confirmed through analysis of telecommunications data from a nearby tower that ceased operations shortly after the tsunami struck, providing a precise timestamp of the disaster's timing.
This research underscores the potential for utilizing underwater sound monitoring as an early warning system for volcanic tsunamis, similar to existing systems for earthquake-induced tsunamis. By recognizing and localizing these underwater signals, communities could receive timely alerts, potentially saving lives in future volcanic events.
