[Rockhounds] How the Tonga Hunga volcano produced the most intense lightning ever seen

[Kreigh Tomaszewski]

Peeking out of the South Pacific Ocean are two little islands, their dark
rock contrasting sharply with the azure water lapping at their edges. While
seemingly unremarkable, they are all that is now visible of a huge
underwater volcano. The islands are in fact small peaks on the rim of
alarge cauldron-like hollow that lies at the heart of Hunga Tonga-Hunga
Ha'apai <https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-61529290>.

The volcano exploded violently in January 2022, blasting 10 cubic km (2.4
cubic miles) of rock, ash and sediment
<https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2022GL098123>
straight
up into the sky, producing a plume 36 miles (58km) high. It was the biggest
atmospheric explosion to be recorded by modern instruments
<https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-63953531>. The enormous
volcanic cloud blanketed the region and was so big it could be seen by
astronauts orbiting onboard the International Space Station
<https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/149367/dramatic-changes-at-hunga-tonga-hunga-haapai>.
A megatsunami with waves up to 45m (147ft) high
<https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adf5493> were hurled outwards
by the eruption, devastating the islands of Tonga
<https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-60039617> and causing damage as far
away as Russia, Hawaii, Peru and Chile. At least six people lost their lives
<https://geoscienceletters.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s40562-022-00232-z>
in
the tsunami, according to reports, including two in Peru
<https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05170-6>. *(Learn more about
the damage caused by the tsunami.)*
<https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-60039542>

But the explosion and tsunami were not the only record-breaking events
triggered by the volcano's eruption. It also sparked the most intense
lighting storm ever witnessed.

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20230713-how-the-tonga-hunga-volcano-produced-the-most-intense-lightning-ever-seen