Tonga volcanic eruption triggers first mega-tsunami since antiquity.
The January 2022 eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai submarine volcano near Tonga generated a "mega-tsunami" nearly the height of a 30-story skyscraper, according to a recent study. The eruption may have been as strong as 15 megatons of TNT, making it the largest natural explosion in more than a century. The eruption released at least five blasts, generating a tsunami up to 279 feet high one minute after the largest explosion. The scientists found that the complex, shallow nature of the region's underwater terrain helped to trap low-velocity waves from the eruption, which in turn helped generate a mega-tsunami that lasted more than an hour.