Overview
On August 27th, 1883 a series of blasts on the island of Krakatoa culminated in a colossal explosion that blew the island apart in one of the largest eruptions in recorded history. Below are a few brief facts about the blast and its effects.
1. The 23km square island of Krakatoa existed at a height of 450m above sea level. The blast leveled most of the island to 250m below sea level.
2. Pyroclastic flows traveled as far as 40km from the island consuming traversing ships in fire and ash.
3. The sound of the final explosion was heard over 4500km away and covered 1/13th of the Earth's surface.
4. The eruption generated tsunamis 40m high that devastated nearby coastlines.
5. The final death toll from pyroclastic flows, volcanic bombs, and tsunamis was calculated to be a devastating 36,417.
Geography and Geology
The island of Krakatoa is located in the Sundra Straits between the islands of Java and Sumatra off the southwestern coast of Indonesia. Krakatoa is one of many active volcanoes along the Indonesian Island Arc, including the famous Tambora volcano. This arc, containing over 130 active volcanoes, is produced by the subduction of the Indo-Australian plate as it moves northward towards mainland Asia.
The island of Krakatoa itself is lies next to two other islands: Lang and Verlaten. These three islands together are the remains of an ancient volcanic island. Ancient Krakatoa, as it is called, exploded in an enormous eruption around 416 A.D., according to Javanese scriptures. In that eruption the majority of the island collapsed into a 7km long caldera beneath Rakata on Krakatoa forming the three present day islands.
The map on the right shows Krakatoa as it was before the great eruption of 1833. Three major volcanoes existed on the island, Perboewetan, Danan(not shown but in the middle), and Rakata. Since the eruption and collapse of Ancient Krakatoa the chamber beneath these three volcanoes had begun to fill, heat up, and create enormous pressure. Of late, Perboewetan had been the most active.
On August 27th, 1883 a series of blasts on the island of Krakatoa culminated in a colossal explosion that blew the island apart in one of the largest eruptions in recorded history. Below are a few brief facts about the blast and its effects.
1. The 23km square island of Krakatoa existed at a height of 450m above sea level. The blast leveled most of the island to 250m below sea level.
2. Pyroclastic flows traveled as far as 40km from the island consuming traversing ships in fire and ash.
3. The sound of the final explosion was heard over 4500km away and covered 1/13th of the Earth's surface.
4. The eruption generated tsunamis 40m high that devastated nearby coastlines.
5. The final death toll from pyroclastic flows, volcanic bombs, and tsunamis was calculated to be a devastating 36,417.
Geography and Geology
The island of Krakatoa is located in the Sundra Straits between the islands of Java and Sumatra off the southwestern coast of Indonesia. Krakatoa is one of many active volcanoes along the Indonesian Island Arc, including the famous Tambora volcano. This arc, containing over 130 active volcanoes, is produced by the subduction of the Indo-Australian plate as it moves northward towards mainland Asia.
The island of Krakatoa itself is lies next to two other islands: Lang and Verlaten. These three islands together are the remains of an ancient volcanic island. Ancient Krakatoa, as it is called, exploded in an enormous eruption around 416 A.D., according to Javanese scriptures. In that eruption the majority of the island collapsed into a 7km long caldera beneath Rakata on Krakatoa forming the three present day islands.
The map on the right shows Krakatoa as it was before the great eruption of 1833. Three major volcanoes existed on the island, Perboewetan, Danan(not shown but in the middle), and Rakata. Since the eruption and collapse of Ancient Krakatoa the chamber beneath these three volcanoes had begun to fill, heat up, and create enormous pressure. Of late, Perboewetan had been the most active.
No comments:
Post a Comment