Lightning Rings and Gravity Waves: Insights Into the Giant Eruption Plume From Tonga's Hunga Volcano on 15 January 2022

Van Eaton, Alexa R.; Lapierre, Jeff; Behnke, Sonja A.; Vagasky, Chris; Schultz, Christopher J.; Pavolonis, Michael; Bedka, Kristopher; Khlopenkov, Konstantin

doi:10.1029/2022gl102341

i

Lightning Rings and Gravity Waves: Insights Into the Giant Eruption Plume From Tonga's Hunga Volcano on 15 January 2022

Supporting Files

2023
By Van Eaton, Alexa R. ; Lapierre, Jeff ; Behnke, Sonja A. ; ...

Details

Journal Title:

Geophysical Research Letters
Personal Author:

Van Eaton, Alexa R. ; Lapierre, Jeff ; Behnke, Sonja A. ; Vagasky, Chris ; Schultz, Christopher J. ; Pavolonis, Michael ; Bedka, Kristopher ; Khlopenkov, Konstantin
NOAA Program & Office:

NESDIS (National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service) ; STAR (Center for Satellite Applications and Research)
Description:

On 15 January 2022, Hunga Volcano in Tonga produced the most violent eruption in the modern satellite era, sending a water-rich plume at least 58 km high. Using a combination of satellite- and ground-based sensors, we investigate the astonishing rate of volcanic lightning (>2,600 flashes min −1) and what it reveals about the dynamics of the submarine eruption. In map view, lightning locations form radially expanding rings. We show that the initial lightning ring is co-located with an internal gravity wave traveling >80 m s −1 in the stratospheric umbrella cloud. Buoyant oscillations of the plume's overshooting top generated the gravity waves, which enhanced turbulent particle interactions and triggered high-current electrical discharges at unusually
Keywords:

General Earth And Planetary Sciences Geophysics General Earth And Planetary Sciences General Earth And Planetary Sciences
Source:

Geophysical Research Letters, 50(12)
DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1029/2022gl102341
ISSN:

0094-8276 ; 1944-8007
Format:

PDF
Publisher:

American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Document Type:

Journal Article
License:

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Rights Information:

CC BY
Compliance:

Library
Main Document Checksum:

urn:sha-512:4418696a938b9b1d2370a9197cac96a7b20bb30cb62d990cde71d4321a9aa439e152adc56b6a80c3fe33add7ee7271996c99d145ac4f7a7dc5fef9f5f0102441
Download URL:

https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/54932/noaa_54932_DS1.pdf
File Type:

[PDF - 860.47 KB ]

Machine readable version (XML)

Download

ON THIS PAGE

Details Supporting Files

The NOAA IR serves as an archival repository of NOAA-published products including scientific findings, journal articles, guidelines, recommendations, or other information authored or co-authored by NOAA or funded partners. As a repository, the NOAA IR retains documents in their original published format to ensure public access to scientific information.