Tracking SO2 plumes from the Tonga volcano eruption with multi-satellite observations

Congzi Xia; Cheng Liu; Zhaonan Cai; Hongyu Wu; Qingxiang Li; Meng Gao

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2024.109446

Tracking SO₂ plumes from the Tonga volcano eruption with multi-satellite observations

iScience. 2024 Mar 8;27(4):109446. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109446. eCollection 2024 Apr 19.

Authors

Congzi Xia^{1

2}, Cheng Liu^{3

4

2

5

6}, Zhaonan Cai⁷, Hongyu Wu⁸, Qingxiang Li⁹, Meng Gao¹⁰

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Big Data for Vocational Education, Guangdong Polytechnic of Science and Technology, Zhuhai 519000, China.
² Department of Precision Machinery and Precision Instrumentation, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
³ Key Lab of Environmental Optics and Technology, Anhui Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031, China.
⁴ Center for Excellence in Regional Atmospheric Environment, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China.
⁵ Key Laboratory of Precision Scientific Instrumentation of Anhui Higher Education Institutes, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
⁶ Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Polar Environment and Global Change, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
⁷ Key Laboratory of Middle Atmosphere and Global Environment Observation, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China.
⁸ School of Environmental Science and Optoelectronic Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
⁹ School of Atmospheric Sciences and Key Laboratory of Tropical Atmosphere-Ocean System, Ministry of Education, Zhuhai 519082, China.
¹⁰ Department of Geography, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong SAR, China.

Abstract

The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai (HTHH) volcano eruption received worldwide attention due to its magnitude and potential effects on environment and climate. However, the operational sulfur dioxide (SO₂) products mis-estimated SO₂ emissions under volcanic conditions due to large uncertainties in the assumptions of SO₂ plume altitude. That might have occurred in previous volcanic eruptions and misled understanding of the evolution of sulfate aerosols in the atmosphere and their impact on global climate. Here, we simultaneously retrieved the volcanic SO₂ and its plume altitude from the Troposphere Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) and the Environment Monitoring Instrument-2 (EMI-2), exploring the SO₂ burden, distribution, and evolution from January 14 to 17. We captured multiple eruptions with the second eruption emitting far more SO₂ than the first. Total emissions exceeded 900 kt, significantly higher than those from operational products. Our inferred emission fluxes and injection heights offer valuable references for climate modeling and submarine volcano studies.

Keywords: Earth sciences; Remote sensing.