Photon Phriday

This visualization shows the evolution Tonga's new island between January 2015 and March 2018. This image shows a 3D representation of the island informally known as Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apa on March 20,2018 as created from Digital Globe satellite imagery. The evolution of the newly-erupted "surtseyan" island (~ 180 hectares in area) in the Kingdom of Tonga in the Southwestern Pacific is documented in a time-lapse sequences of perspective views using a time-series of DigitalGlobe WorldView images from just after the eruption ended in late January 2015 until March 2018. These meter-resolution views were generated using Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) created by the NASA- led science team using stereo-pairs of DigitalGlobe Worldview images, and have allowed the erosional history of this unique island to be studied from a never-before-possible spaceborne perspective. The impact of marine abrasion on the somewhat fragile volcanic-ash landscapes is evident as the southern and southeastern margins of the new island, informally known as Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apai (HTHH), recede, while deposition of a widening isthmus grows to the northeast.Research results from NASA-funded science team led by James B. Garvin (NASA GSFC), Daniel A. Slayback (SSAI), Vicki Ferrini (Columbia) in the AGU's Geophysical Research Letters journal suggest the island's lifetime may be extended for another 25-30 years if geochemical fortification continues to protect key regions. The HTHH island is the first surtseyan eruption-based island to have persisted as "new land" for more than 6 months since Surtsey erupted near Iceland in 1963. Studies of the landscape evolution of pristine volcanic islands of this variety previously relied on a combination of aerial photography, field mapping, and laboratory sample analysis, but this new work enables an optimized approach via advanced satellite optical and radar imaging in combination with ship-based bathymetric mapping. Results of this work can be applied to understanding numerous small volcanic landforms on Mars whose formation may have been in shallow-water environments during epochs when persistent surface water was present. Related pages

This visualization shows the two original islands in Tonga, Hunga Tonga and Hunga Ha'apai, as they appeared in December of 2014. The visualization fades to the new island informally known as Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apai as it appeared in March 2018, after the severe tropical cyclone Gita passed over the region.This video is also available on our YouTube channel. This visualization portrays a slow flyover of the Martian landscape.This video is also available on our YouTube channel. This visualization is similar to the one above except that artificial water has been added to show how water may have eroded landforms on Mars during epochs when persistent surface water was present.Coming soon to our YouTube channel. This visualization shows the location of the Kingdom of Tonga in the South Pacific. In early 2015, a volcanic eruption in the Kingdom of Tonga created a new island informally known as Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apai (HTHH). The subsequent evolution of the new island was previously described in "The Birth of a New Island" available here. Below are additional visualizations, including an updated view of the island's appearance in March 2018 as well as some visualizations of the martian surface. Results of this study can enhance our understanding of numerous small volcanic landforms on Mars whose formation may have been in shallow-water environments during epochs when persistent surface water was present.The complete visualization of "Using Earth to understand how water may have affected volcanoes on Mars" is available here.Learn more about the evolution of Earth's newest island and how it could reveal new information about the presence of water on Mars: https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/2017GL076621 Related pages