DOE PAGES title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Lightning Rings and Gravity Waves: Insights Into the Giant Eruption Plume From Tonga's Hunga Volcano on 15 January 2022

Journal Article · · Geophysical Research Letters
ORCiD logo [1];  [2]; ORCiD logo [3]; ORCiD logo [4]; ORCiD logo [5]; ORCiD logo [6]; ORCiD logo [7]; ORCiD logo [8]
  1. U.S. Geological Survey Cascades Volcano Observatory Vancouver WA USA
  2. Advanced Environmental Monitoring (AEM) Germantown MD USA
  3. Electromagnetic Sciences and Cognitive Space Applications Los Alamos National Laboratory Los Alamos NM USA
  4. Vaisala Inc. Louisville CO USA, Now at Department of Agronomy University of Wisconsin Madison WI USA
  5. NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville AL USA
  6. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)/National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) Center for Satellite Applications and Research Advanced Satellite Products Branch Madison WI USA
  7. NASA Langley Research Center Hampton VA USA
  8. Science Systems and Applications, Inc Hampton VA USA

Abstract On 15 January 2022, Hunga Volcano in Tonga produced the most violent eruption in the modern satellite era, sending a water‐rich plume at least 58 km high. Using a combination of satellite‐ and ground‐based sensors, we investigate the astonishing rate of volcanic lightning (>2,600 flashes min −1 ) and what it reveals about the dynamics of the submarine eruption. In map view, lightning locations form radially expanding rings. We show that the initial lightning ring is co‐located with an internal gravity wave traveling >80 m s −1 in the stratospheric umbrella cloud. Buoyant oscillations of the plume's overshooting top generated the gravity waves, which enhanced turbulent particle interactions and triggered high‐current electrical discharges at unusually high altitudes. Our analysis attributes the intense lightning activity to an exceptional mass eruption rate (>5 × 10 9  kg s −1 ), rapidly expanding umbrella cloud, and entrainment of abundant seawater vaporized from magma‐water interaction at the submarine vent.

Research Organization:
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); USDOE; USDOE Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program
Grant/Contract Number:
89233218CNA000001
OSTI ID:
1985735
Report Number(s):
LA-UR-23-23258; e2022GL102341
Journal Information:
Geophysical Research Letters, Journal Name: Geophysical Research Letters Journal Issue: 12 Vol. 50; ISSN 0094-8276
Publisher:
American Geophysical Union (AGU)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

References (73)

Dynamics of streamer-to-leader transition at reduced air densities and its implications for propagation of lightning leaders and gigantic jets journal December 2013
Lightning locating systems: Insights on characteristics and validation techniques journal April 2015
Narrow bipolar pulse locations compared to thunderstorm radar echo structure journal November 2015
Changes to the turbulent kinematics of a volcanic plume inferred from lightning data journal May 2015
An overview of the 29 May 2012 Kingfisher supercell during DC3: OBSERVATIONS OF THE 29 MAY 2012 DC3 CASE journal December 2016
Electrical discharges in the overshooting tops of thunderstorms: DISCHARGES IN STORM OVERSHOOTING TOPS journal March 2017
Spatial relationship between lightning narrow bipolar events and parent thunderstorms as revealed by phased array radar journal February 2013
Density‐driven transport in the umbrella region of volcanic clouds: Implications for tephra dispersion models journal September 2013
Optical power and energy radiated by natural lightning: LIGHTNING OPTICAL POWER AND ENERGY journal February 2013
Towards a global lightning locating system journal February 2017
Did ice-charging generate volcanic lightning during the 2016–2017 eruption of Bogoslof volcano, Alaska? journal February 2020
Volcanic electrification: recent advances and future perspectives journal July 2022
Electrification of volcanic plumes journal July 2006
The behavior of total lightning activity in severe Florida thunderstorms journal July 1999
IMS observations of infrasound and acoustic-gravity waves produced by the January 2022 volcanic eruption of Hunga, Tonga: A global analysis journal August 2022
Volcanic particle aggregation in explosive eruption columns. Part II: Numerical experiments journal February 2006
Observations of volcanic lightning during the 2009 eruption of Redoubt Volcano journal June 2013
Estimation of eruption source parameters from umbrella cloud or downwind plume growth rate journal May 2013
The physics of lightning journal January 2014
Volcanic plume simulation on large scales journal December 1998
A distinct class of isolated intracloud lightning discharges and their associated radio emissions journal February 1999
Sedimentation from strong volcanic plumes journal July 2003
A three-dimensional numerical simulation of spreading umbrella clouds journal January 2009
The relationship between lightning activity and ice fluxes in thunderstorms journal January 2008
Applying the three-dimensional model ATHAM to volcanic plumes: Dynamic of large co-ignimbrite eruptions and associated injection heights for volcanic gases journal October 2010
Long-range lightning geolocation using a VLF radio atmospheric waveform bank journal December 2010
Ascent dynamics of large phreatomagmatic eruption clouds: The role of microphysics: ASCENT OF LARGE-SCALE WET ERUPTIONS journal March 2012
Discharge height of lightning narrow bipolar events journal March 2012
Automated Detection of Explosive Volcanic Eruptions Using Satellite-Derived Cloud Vertical Growth Rates journal December 2018
Meteorological Imagery for the Geostationary Lightning Mapper journal December 2019
A First Look at Cloud Inhomogeneity and Its Effect on Lightning Optical Emission journal May 2020
Impulsive Volcanic Plumes Generate Volcanic Lightning and Vent Discharges: A Statistical Analysis of Sakurajima Volcano in 2015 journal May 2021
The 15 January 2022 Hunga Tonga Eruption History as Inferred From Ionospheric Observations journal May 2022
The Hunga Tonga‐Hunga Ha'apai Hydration of the Stratosphere journal July 2022
Global Electromagnetic Disturbances Caused by the Eruption of the Tonga Volcano on 15 January 2022 journal November 2022
Stereo Plume Height and Motion Retrievals for the Record‐Setting Hunga Tonga‐Hunga Ha'apai Eruption of 15 January 2022 journal April 2022
A Terrestrial Gamma‐Ray Flash From the 2022 Hunga Tonga–Hunga Ha'apai Volcanic Eruption journal July 2022
Stratospheric Balloon Observations of Infrasound Waves From the 15 January 2022 Hunga Eruption, Tonga journal October 2022
On the formation of eruption columns following explosive mixing of magma and surface-water journal March 1996
The dynamics of explosive volcanic eruptions journal January 1995
Satellite observations and interpretation of the 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption plumes journal December 1996
A Combined TOA/MDF Technology Upgrade of the U.S. National Lightning Detection Network journal April 1998
Sources of the strongest RF radiation from lightning journal January 1980
Observations of narrow bipolar events reveal how lightning is initiated in thunderstorms journal February 2016
Upward electrical discharges from thunderstorms journal March 2008
Gigantic jet discharges evolve stepwise through the middle atmosphere journal September 2019
Global Tonga tsunami explained by a fast-moving atmospheric source journal June 2022
Anak Krakatau triggers volcanic freezer in the upper troposphere journal February 2020
Observations of lightning in relation to transitions in volcanic activity during the 3 June 2018 Fuego Eruption journal October 2020
Eruption chronology of the December 2021 to January 2022 Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai eruption sequence journal December 2022
The unexpected radiative impact of the Hunga Tonga eruption of 15th January 2022 journal November 2022
Review article: Volcanological applications of meteorological satellites journal January 1998
Preliminary detection efficiency and false alarm rate assessment of the Geostationary Lightning Mapper on the GOES-16 satellite journal April 2020
Upward propagation of gigantic jets revealed by 3D radio and optical mapping journal August 2022
The 2022 Hunga-Tonga megatsunami: Near-field simulation of a once-in-a-century event journal April 2023
The January 2022 eruption of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano reached the mesosphere journal November 2022
Atmospheric waves and global seismoacoustic observations of the January 2022 Hunga eruption, Tonga journal July 2022
Water vapor injection into the stratosphere by Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai journal September 2022
Eruption dynamics leading to a volcanic thunderstorm—The January 2020 eruption of Taal volcano, Philippines journal January 2022
Polarimetric and Electrical Characteristics of a Lightning Ring in a Supercell Storm journal June 2010
Evolution of Lightning Activity and Storm Charge Relative to Dual-Doppler Analysis of a High-Precipitation Supercell Storm journal July 2013
Numerically Simulated Electrification and Lightning of the 29 June 2000 STEPS Supercell Storm journal October 2006
Theory and Observations of Controls on Lightning Flash Size Spectra journal December 2013
Numerical Simulations of Lightning and Storm Charge of the 29–30 May 2004 Geary, Oklahoma, Supercell Thunderstorm Using EnKF Mobile Radar Data Assimilation journal October 2014
Relationships between Deep Convection Updraft Characteristics and Satellite-Based Super Rapid Scan Mesoscale Atmospheric Motion Vector–Derived Flow journal September 2018
Enveloped Eyewall Lightning: The EEL Signature in Tropical Cyclones journal November 2017
Out of the blue: Volcanic SO2 emissions during the 2021–2022 eruptions of Hunga Tonga—Hunga Ha’apai (Tonga) journal September 2022
Operational Modelling of Umbrella Cloud Growth in a Lagrangian Volcanic Ash Transport and Dispersion Model journal February 2020
Comparing Simulations of Umbrella-Cloud Growth and Ash Transport with Observations from Pinatubo, Kelud, and Calbuco Volcanoes journal September 2020
Upgrades of the Earth Networks Total Lightning Network in 2021 journal May 2022
Small-scale mixing processes enhancing troposphere-to-stratosphere transport by pyro-cumulonimbus storms journal December 2007
Detection efficiency of the VLF World-Wide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN): initial case study journal January 2006
Lightning and volcanic plume data from the climactic eruption of Hunga Volcano, Tonga, in January 2022 dataset January 2023