Metis Shoal Submarine Volcano May Be Erupting
1. FEWW seismic analysis of Tonga Islands region in south Pacific Ocean (SPO) indicate that Metis Shoal, a submarine volcano located midway between the islands of Kao and Late (about 50 km NNE of Kao), may be about to erupt, or is currently undergoing a period of unrest.
2. Metis Shoal’s last known eruption occurred in 1995, which produced an island with a diameter of about 300 m and a height of 43 m after a solid lava dome was formed above the surface of water in SPO.
3. Since 1851 some 8 episodes of unrest have been recorded. In three, possibly five, of those occasions new islands were created (1858, 1967-68, 1979, 1995).
Metis Shoal
- Country: Tonga
- Region: Tonga Islands, SPO
- Volcano Type: Submarine volcano
- Last Known Eruption: 1995
- Summit Elevation: 43 m asl
- Latitude: 19.18°S 19°11’0″S
- Longitude: 174.87°W 174°52’0″W
4. Metis Shoal, a submarine volcano midway between the islands of Kao and Late, has produced a series of ephemeral islands since the first confirmed activity in the mid-19th century. An island, perhaps not in eruption, was reported in 1781 and subsequently was eroded away. During periods of inactivity following 20th-century eruptions, waves have been observed to break on rocky reefs or sandy banks with depths of 10 m or less. Dacitic tuff cones formed during the first 20th-century eruptions in 1967 and 1979 were soon eroded beneath the sea surface. An eruption in 1995 produced an island with a diameter of 280 m and a height of 43 m following growth of a lava dome above the surface. [Caption: GVP]
5. Waves break over Metis Shoal on February 19, 1968, more than a month after the end of a submarine eruption that began in December 1967 and produced an ephemeral island. Metis Shoal has produced a series of small islands during eruptions observed since the mid-19th century. Most recently, an eruption in 1995 produced a lava dome that built up to 43 m above sea level. Photo by Charles Lundquist, 1968 (Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory). Caption: GVP
6. Map of the Tonga Islands, showing the island groups and location of Metis Shoal, which re-emerged as an island in June 1995. Source: GVP
Other Photos of Metis Shoal
7. Metis Shoal, sea level view. Source: MTU
8. Metis shoal, aerial view. Source: MTU
9. Metis Shoal aerial photo dated December 7, 2006. Source: GVP
Related Links:
- Global Volcanism Network Bulletin v. 20, no. 6, June 1995 Eruption builds new island
- Metis Shoal: Index of Monthly Reports (GVP)
- Two Volcanoes Erupt in Japan
- Volcanoes [Links page]
- Earthquake Forecast 2009 : Japan
- A New Era of Intense Volcanic Unrest May Have Begun
- Earthquakes [Links page]
Content of this post: 424 words, 9 paras/captions, 5 images, 1 list w/9 bullets
Fire Earth 