Volcano’s Effects Reached Space

The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano erupted in January, and satellites in space detected hurricane-speed winds and and strange electric currents.

IMAGE: The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai eruption on Jan. 15, 2022, caused many effects, some illustrated here, that were felt around the world and even into space. Some of those effects, like extreme winds and unusual electric currents were picked up by NASA’s ICON mission and ESA’s (the European Space Agency) Swarm. Image not to scale. CREDIT: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith

Back in January, the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano erupted and was literally heard around the world. Even Beth, in California, heard the sonic boom that day. Plus, the shock waves and tsunami waves also had a far reach. And now, in new research published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, scientists examine how that eruption reached and affected space.

Data collected by NASA’s Ionospheric Connection Explorer, or ICON, mission and ESA’s Swarm satellites was analyzed by scientists, who found that hurricane-speed winds and strange electric currents actually formed in the ionosphere. That’s the very topmost charged atmosphere that butts up against the edge of space. The charged particles in that region tend to form east-flowing electric currents — called the equatorial electrojet. After the eruption, the electrojet surged, reaching five times its normal power, and flipped directions for a brief time.

All of this is due to the extreme winds created from one volcanic explosion that occurred underneath the water. Co-author Joanne Wu notes: It’s very surprising to see the electrojet be…