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Tonga volcano blast was unusual, could even warm the Earth

FILE - This satellite image made by the Japanese weather satellite Himawari-8 shows the eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai undersea volcano at the Pacific nation of Tonga on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022. The volcano shot millions of tons of water vapor high up into the atmosphere according to a study published Thursday, Sept. 22, 2022, in the journal Science. Researchers estimate the event raised the amount of water in the stratosphere - the second layer of the atmosphere, above the range where humans live and breathe - by around 5%. (Japan Meteorology Agency via AP) FILE - In this photo provided by New Zealand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano erupts near Tonga in the South Pacific Ocean on Jan. 14, 2015. The volcano shot millions of tons of water vapor high up into the atmosphere according to a study published Thursday, Sept. 22, 2022, in the journal Science. Researchers estimate the event raised the amount of water in the stratosphere - the second layer of the atmosphere, above the range where humans live and breathe - by around 5%. (AP Photo/New Zealand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade)
Tonga volcano blast was unusual, could even warm the Earth