Tonga’s volcano eruption: in pictures

The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai undersea volcano eruption is thought to be the largest volcanic event in 30 years. Here are a selection of images of what we have seen so far


Main image: A view from a P-3K2 Orion aircraft of an area covered in volcanic ash in Tonga. Photograph: New Zealand Defence Force

  • An eruption occurs at the underwater volcano Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai off Tonga, 14 January 2022.
    An eruption occurs at the underwater volcano Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai off Tonga, January 14, 2022.

  • An image from the NOAA GOES-West satellite of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai erupting.
    An image from the NOAA GOES-West satellite of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai erupting

  • Streets and buildings flooded by a tsunami following the latest eruption.
    Streets and buildings flooded following the latest eruption.

  • A local firefighter in Japan keeps watch for further tsunamis by a fire truck at Enoshima. Waves up to a metre high hits some parts of the Japanese coast early on Sunday.
    A local firefighter in Japan keeps watch for further tsunamis by a fire truck at Enoshima. Waves up to a metre high hit some parts of the Japanese coast early on Sunday

  • A damaged boat in a marina at Tutukaka, New Zealand, after waves from the Tonga volcano eruption swept into the marina.
    People look at a damaged boat in a marina at Tutukaka, New Zealand, after waves from the volcano eruption swept into the marina.

  • Cleaning crews remove oil from a beach in the Peruvian province of Callao, after a spill from a tanker at La Pampilla refinery caused by the abnormal waves.
    Cleaning crews remove oil from a beach in the Peruvian province of Callao, after a spill from a tanker at La Pampilla refinery caused by the abnormal waves

  • A combination of satellite images taken by Himawari-8, a Japanese weather satellite operated by Japan Meteorological Agency and released by National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT).
    A combination of satellite images taken by Himawari-8, a Japanese weather satellite operated by Japan Meteorological Agency and released by National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT)

  • Tsunami surge inundates a car park at the top of the Upper Harbor in Santa Cruz, California.
    Tsunami surge inundates a car park at the top of the Upper Harbor in Santa Cruz, California

  • A man photographs the big waves in the breakwater at Venice beach in Los Angeles, California.
    A man photographs the big waves in the breakwater in Venice beach in Los Angeles, California

  • A combination of satellite images shows the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano in April 2021 and the same area on January 18 2022.
    A combination of satellite images shows the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano in April 2021 and the same area on January 18 2022

  • This combination of satellite images shows a residential area of Tonga on December 19 2021 and the same area on January 18 2022 covered in ash after the eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano.
    This combination of satellite images shows a residential area of Tonga on December 19 2021 and the same area on January 18 2022 covered in ash after the eruption of the Hunga-Tonga - Hunga-Haa’pai volcano

  • This photo taken from a New Zealand Defence Force P-3K2 Orion aircraft flying over Nomuka in Tonga shows ash on the roofs of homes and surrounding vegetation.
    This handout photo from the New Zealand Defence Force shows a P-3K2 Orion aircraft flying over Nomuka in Tonga showing ash on the roofs of homes and surrounding vegetation.

  • A New Zealand Defence Force P-3K2 Orion flies over Tonga.
    A P-3K2 Orion aircraft flies over an area of Tonga that shows the heavy ash fall.

  • Combination satellite images show the port facilities in Nuku’alofa, the capital of Tonga, before and after the eruption.
    Combination satellite images show the port facilities in Nukualofa, the capital of Tonga before and after the eruption

  • An area covered in volcanic ash in Tonga after the eruption of the Hunga-Tonga - Hunga-Haa’pai volcano.
    An area covered in volcanic ash in Tonga, after the eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano
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