Indonesia’s Anak Krakatau Volcano released a small steam plume on July 7, 2009, as the Advanced Land Imager (ALI) on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 satellite passed overhead. This true-color image shows the volcanic island, largely devoid of vegetation except along the coast, and neighboring green Krakatau Kitjil. A white plume blows away from the summit and toward the southwest. The plume’s light color suggests that it consists primarily of steam.
Anak Krakatau means “Child of Krakatau” and the volcanic island formed in the caldera of Krakatau Island, which erupted spectacularly in 1883, completely destroying nearby Danan and Perbuwatan Volcanoes, spawning tsunamis, and claiming more than 36,000 lives. Anak Krakatau has experienced frequent eruptions since 1927.
Krakatau is sometimes misstated as Krakatoa.
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NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using EO-1 ALI data provided courtesy of the NASA EO-1 Team. Caption by Michon Scott.
