Although most of Krakatau disappeared in the gigantic eruption of 1883, the volcano lives on in Anak Krakatau, or “Child of Krakatau.” Anak Krakatau (also known as Krakatoa) emerged from the water of Indonesia’s Sunda Strait in 1927, and has erupted sporadically ever since. According to Antara News (the official news agency of Indonesia), a series of lava fountains and ash emissions began in early September 2012, accompanied by volcanic tremors.
This natural-color satellite image shows fresh lava flows descending the southeastern flank of Anak Krakatau. The flows have extended part of the shoreline by about 100 meters (330 feet). Tiny airborne liquid and solid particles (aerosols) emitted by the volcano likely helped form the clouds downwind of the summit.
The image was collected by the Advanced Land Imager (ALI) aboard the Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite on the morning of September 4, 2012. The Terra satellite captured an image of a larger ash plume erupted by Anak Krakatau on September 3.
References & Resources
- Global Volcanism Program. (n.d.). Krakatau. Accessed September 5, 2012.
- Antara News. (2012, September 4). Mt Anak Krakatau continues to spew hot lava. Accessed September 5, 2012.
NASA Earth Observatory image by Jesse Allen and Robert Simmon, using EO-1 ALI data from the NASA EO-1 team.
