US space agency warns of shark volcano in Solomon Islands

The US space agency NASA has warned of an eruption of the Kavachi volcano in the Solomon Islands, which is completely submerged under the sea, after images revealed a column of discolored water spewing from the Ponds Crater in the Pacific Ocean.

shark volcano

The agency called the event “Shark Volcano”, because two known species of sharks live in the submerged crater of the volcano, which began to erupt, according to the British newspaper, Daily Mail, on Monday.

The newspaper said, “The agency’s satellite images captured a column of color-changing water emanating from the Kavachi volcano in one of the Solomon Islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, where mutant sharks live in the crater of this underwater acid volcano.”

Satellite images published on May 14 show a column of color-changing water emanating from Kavachi volcano, located 15 miles south of Fangunu Island in the Solomon Islands.

According to the Smithsonian’s Global Volcanism Program, the Kavachi volcano entered the eruption phase in October 2021.

New satellite data showed its activity over several days in April and May 2022.

According to NASA, previous research showed that “hyper-acidic water columns usually contain particulate matter, volcanic rock fragments, and sulfur.”

Sharks

However, she added, “this should not be a problem for sharks residing in the volcanic zone, as they have adapted to life in hot, acidic conditions.”

Research published in 2015 found two species of sharks living in the crater of Kavachi volcano, including the scalloped hammerhead and the silky shark.

The researchers also found “sniper fish, jellyfish and sulfur-eating microbial communities”.

“The presence of sharks in the volcanic region has raised new questions about the environment of active marine volcanoes and the harsh environments in which large marine animals can be found,” they wrote in an article published in 2016, entitled “Exploring Shark Canoe.”

And they saw that “sharks have mutated to live in the hot and acidic environment.”

“These large animals live in what you should assume are waters that are much hotter and much more acidic than sea water, and it makes you wonder what kind of harsh environment these animals are adapting to,” ocean engineer Brennan Phillips said in an earlier interview with National Geographic. .

Pacific

Kavachi volcano is one of the most active marine volcanoes in the Pacific Ocean, with the first reports of its activity recorded in 1939.

The volcano has experienced at least 11 major eruptions since the late 1970s and two in 1976 and 1991 were so powerful that they created new islands.

However, these islands were not large enough to resist erosion and eventually became submerged.

It is currently estimated that the summit of the volcano lies at a depth of 65 feet (20 meters) below sea level; Its base lies on the sea floor at a depth of 0.75 miles (1.2 km).