Delayed submarine caldera subsidence creates extreme tsunami hazard
Abstract
The 2022 Hunga volcano eruption generated one of the largest and most destructive volcanic tsunamis ever recorded. We interpret the timing, nature and relative hazard of volcanic-tsunamigenic processes by combining geophysical, oceanographic, atmospheric, and eye-witness observations of this event. Hydro-acoustic signal ( T waves) detected on seismic stations up to 2600 km away provided a key to discerning tsunami triggers from explosions, volcanic mass flows, and caldera subsidence. The largest tsunami was generated by the first of at least two sudden caldera-subsidence events. This occurred 1 hour after globally detected explosions that produced smaller tsunami. Our results provide rare insights into the rates of caldera subsidence and highlight the complex multiple sources of tsunamis resulting from eruptions of oceanic volcanoes.
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Authors: Shane J. Cronin, B. Steinke, J. C. Borrero, Emile A. Okal, Marta Ribó, Jie Wu, James D. L. White, Marco Brenna, Joali Paredes‐Mariño, Mila Huebsch, R. J. M. Baxter, Ulrich Speidel, Alexa R. Van Eaton, Larry G. Mastin, Michael Clare, Isobel Yeo, James E. Hunt, Jacob Nash, J. B. Garvin, Rennie Vaiomounga, Taaniela Kula, Sung-Hyun Park
Institutions: Northwestern University, University of Southern California, University of Otago, Goddard Space Flight Center, University of Auckland, United States Geological Survey, Ministry of Natural Resources, Auckland University of Technology, National Oceanography Centre, Cascades Volcano Observatory, Korea Polar Research Institute, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and Food