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Infamous “Child of Krakatoa” Volcano Erupts, Spewing Ash and Lava High Into the Air

Meanwhile in Indonesia…

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Child of Krakatoa

(TMU) — A volcano in the infamous Krakatoa archipelago has erupted, spewing a massive plume of ash 1,640 feet (500 meters) into the air, researchers said Saturday.

The loud eruption could be heard over 90 miles away in Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta, and is the longest eruption since the island collapsed in a major explosion that led to a deadly tsunami that killed 430 people in December 2018.

The Anak Krakatau volcano has been erupting since late Friday night and through Saturday morning, according to the Associated Press.

The volcano, which is located in Indonesia’s Sunda Strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra, began with dramatic lava flares caught on CCTV.

The Jakarta Post reports that the first eruption began at 9:58 p.m. and lasted one minute and 12 seconds, blasting ash and smoke out over 650 feet (200 meters) high, according to the Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation’s (PVMBG).

The second eruption was registered by the volcano at 10:35 p.m. and lasted for over 38 minutes, spewing out the much larger column of ash that was 1,640 feet (500 meters) high.

Kasbani, the head of the Center, said:

“[The eruption is] still within the expected level for a disaster-prone area. Continued eruptions could potentially occur, but there has been no detection of volcanic activity that could lead to greater eruption intensity.” 

No injuries were reported in the explosion, yet military and police officers were on standby to evacuate residents if necessary. The eruption happened as Indonesia continues to take measures against the coronavirus pandemic.

Following the eruption, rumors began spreading on social networks including many false claims about “Krakatoa” erupting. Some users even posted video footage of entirely different eruptions from volcanos on different continents, such as Mexico’s Popocatépetl volcano, while claiming that it was the one on Indonesia.

Minor activity was reported around Anak Krakatau in May 2019, but there hasn’t been a significant eruption at the small volcano island since December 22, 2018 and the following day.

The volcano, known as “Child of Krakatoa,” emerged after the much greater Krakatoa stratovolcano erupted in a cataclysmic explosion 10,000 times more powerful than the atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima.

As geophysicist Mika McKinnon tweeted:

“Krakatau erupted so fiercely in 1883 that it destroyed itself while wrecking devastation. This is Anak Krakatau, ‘Child of Krakatau’ rebuilt by subsequent eruptions

This eruption is not unusual but it is dangerous. Stay away.”

Roughly 36,000 people died in the 1883 eruption, which destroyed hundreds of villages and sent ash as far as Europe, while people in New York also reported a hazy and red skyline for days. Studies showed that the eruption was the likely cause of lower temperatures across the globe in subsequent years.

By Elias Marat | Creative Commons | TheMindUnleashed.com

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