Do sound waves from volcanic eruptions travel around the world? I recently read about the Krakatoa eruption and how sound waves from that eruption traveled around the globe 4 times and were detected by weather stations through pressure spikes in barometers (The Sound So Loud That It Circled the Earth Four Times). What I'm curious about is whether this has ever been documented in other volcanic eruptions?
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$\begingroup$ May be useful: The eruption near Tonga was so powerful you could hear it in Alaska. I'm still looking for a good reference to the multiple times around the Earth pressure wave (infrasound) measurements. $\endgroup$– GrapefruitIsAwesomeJan 20, 2022 at 2:17
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$\begingroup$ 2022 Tonga volcanic eruption. $\endgroup$– FredJan 22, 2022 at 17:03
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1 Answer
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Yes, if you include low frequency pressure changes as would be recorded on a barometer as sound waves.
The 2022 Hunga Tonga eruption sent atmospheric pressure waves that were detected multiple times around the Earth.
According to the Global Volcanism Program:
The sonic boom from this wave was heard at great distances, including in Fiji (about 500 km NW), within about two hours in New Zealand (1,600-2,000 km), and within about nine hours in Alaska, USA (9,370 km NE). The pressure wave was also recorded by infrasound and weather instruments worldwide as it circled the Earth, with instruments picking up the wave a second time as it arrived from the opposite direction.
In a tweet sent by Michael Bunds you can see in the pressure each time the shock wave passed the weather station in Utah:
answered Jan 22, 2022 at 13:35
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$\begingroup$ slightly related and currently unanswered Was the "'Bama Boom" even recorded by infrasound or by seismic detectors? $\endgroup$– uhohMay 28, 2022 at 23:56