Tofua

Tofua
Tofua Island (lower left) and neighbouring Kao Island, Tonga, Pacific Ocean
Highest point
Elevation515 m (1,690 ft)
Prominence515 m (1,690 ft)
ListingList of volcanoes in Tonga
Coordinates19°45′00″S 175°04′30″W / 19.75000°S 175.07500°W / -19.75000; -175.07500
Geography
Tofua is located in Tonga
Tofua
Tonga Islands, Tonga
Geology
Mountain typeVolcanic caldera
Last eruption2022 (Ongoing)[1]
Tofua caldera

Tofua is a volcanic island in Tonga. Located in the Haʻapai island group, it is a steep-sided composite cone with a summit caldera. It is part of the highly active Kermadec-Tonga subduction zone and its associated volcanic arc, which extends from New Zealand north-northeast to Fiji, and is formed by the subduction of the Pacific Plate under the Indo-Australian Plate.[2] It lies about 100 km (62 mi) above a very active seismic zone.[3] It is connected to the nearby island of Kao by a submarine ridge.[4]

The island is a national park.

  1. ^ "Tofua: Eruptive History". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  2. ^ Caulfield, J. T.; Turner, S. P.; Smith, I. E. M.; Cooper, L. B.; Jenner, G. A. (2012). "Magma Evolution in the Primitive, Intra-oceanic Tonga Arc: Petrogenesis of Basaltic Andesites at Tofua Volcano". Journal of Petrology. 53 (6): 1197–1230. doi:10.1093/petrology/egs013. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  3. ^ Ewart, A.; Bryan, W.B.; and Gill, J.B. "Mineralogy and Geochemistry of the Younger Volcanic Islands of Tonga, S.W. Pacific." Journal of Petrology. 14:3 (1973). doi:10.1093/petrology/14.3.429
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Bauer1970 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).