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Report on Krakatau (Indonesia) — 11 May-17 May 2022


Krakatau

Smithsonian Institution / US Geological Survey
Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 11 May-17 May 2022
Managing Editor: Sally Sennert.

Please cite this report as:

Global Volcanism Program, 2022. Report on Krakatau (Indonesia) (Sennert, S, ed.). Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 11 May-17 May 2022. Smithsonian Institution and US Geological Survey.

Weekly Report (11 May-17 May 2022)

Krakatau

Indonesia

6.1009°S, 105.4233°E; summit elev. 285 m

All times are local (unless otherwise noted)


The Darwin VAAC reported that during 10-12 May ash plumes from Anak Krakatau rose to 2.4 km (8,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted E, N, NW, and W based on satellite images and weather models. On 13 May satellite images showed a narrow ash plume drifting SE and E at an altitude of 2.4 km. Dense steam plume with minor ash content rose to 2.4 km and drifted NE, N, NW, and W during 14-16 May.

Geological Summary. The renowned Krakatau (frequently mis-named as Krakatoa) volcano lies in the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra. Collapse of an older edifice, perhaps in 416 or 535 CE, formed a 7-km-wide caldera. Remnants of that volcano are preserved in Verlaten and Lang Islands; subsequently the Rakata, Danan, and Perbuwatan cones were formed, coalescing to create the pre-1883 Krakatau Island. Caldera collapse during the catastrophic 1883 eruption destroyed Danan and Perbuwatan, and left only a remnant of Rakata. This eruption caused more than 36,000 fatalities, most as a result of tsunamis that swept the adjacent coastlines of Sumatra and Java. Pyroclastic surges traveled 40 km across the Sunda Strait and reached the Sumatra coast. After a quiescence of less than a half century, the post-collapse cone of Anak Krakatau (Child of Krakatau) was constructed within the 1883 caldera at a point between the former Danan and Perbuwatan cones. Anak Krakatau has been the site of frequent eruptions since 1927.

Source: Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC)