Experts: Volcano eruption near Tonga will not affect global climate

(CNN) – Although supervolcanoes have the potential to influence global temperatures and climate, Volcano eruption near Tonga Experts told CNN that Saturday may not have been broad enough to affect global weather.

The eruption of the Hongga-Tonga-Hunga-Hapai volcano was enormous: perhaps the largest in 30 years, according to experts. unleashed a huge cloud of ash and sulfur dioxide (SO2) into the atmosphere, more than 30 kilometers above sea level, According to data from NASA satellites.

At this altitude, above the influence of the jet stream from the stratosphere known as the stratosphere, the aerosols can remain for years. It should be noted that when sulfur dioxide reaches the stratosphere, it reacts with water and creates a cloudy layer of gas that prevents sunlight from reaching the Earth’s surface, which can lead to cooler temperatures.

But scientists also estimate, From satellite data, that the total mass of sulfur dioxide from Saturday’s eruption was 0.4 teragram (400 million kilograms) of sulfur dioxide. Number one is much lower than what specialists say could dramatically change the global climate.

For example, the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in 1991 released 15 to 20 Tg of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere. resulting in a global temperature drop of 0.6°C over the next 15 months, According to NASA.

The sulfur dioxide released into the atmosphere due to the Hong Tonga eruption was “well below the usual threshold for anything to have an impact,” said Eric Klimty, associate professor of Earth sciences at Denison University in Granville, Ohio. General”.

other scholars echo To rate Klemetti on Twitter.

“If the volcano decided it was going to have a series of eruptions and it kept happening, that would change things,” Klemetti told CNN. “But right now, it looks like it was a short enough event that didn’t have enough sulfur to make a significant impact on the climate,” he added.

Klemetti pointed out that the eruption is near Tonga It can have a regional effect on temperature. Although scientists are still not sure how important it is. He stressed that it ultimately depends on the amount of sulfur dioxide that has reached the stratosphere.

Klemetti also emphasized that it is not ash that affects global temperature and climate. Most people assume volcanic ash is what reflects sunlight and affects global temperatures, he said. But unlike aerosols, ash does not stay in the atmosphere for long. Instead, there must be a large amount of sulfur dioxide.

The ash particle, he said, is an “actual shard of glass”. “It’s small, but it has enough mass that it falls out of the atmosphere very quickly,” he said.