Anak Krakatau (Child of Krakatau) volcano in the Indonesian province of Lampung erupted on Friday, April 10, 2020. This volcano is an island between the islands of Java and Sumatra in Indonesia. It emerged from a caldera left by the explosive volcanic eruption that destroyed the island of Krakatoa in 1883. The word “Anak” means “child” in Indonesian. According to a story in the Jakarta Post, Anak Krakatau was seen on April 10:
… spewing out a 200-meter-high [650-foot-high] column of ash and smoke.
The Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation’s (PVMBG) magma volcanic activity report said that the first eruption lasted one minute and 12 seconds starting at 9:58 p.m., when it spewed out ash and smoke 200 meters [about 650 feet] high.
The volcanology center reported a second eruption at 10:35 p.m. that lasted for 38 minutes and 4 seconds, spewing out a 500-meter-high [1,600-foot-high] column of ash that blew to the north.
![](https://earthsky.org/upl/2020/04/anak-krakatau-map-april-2020-e1586601715696.png)
Anak Krakatau is located in Indonesia. Visit MAGMA Indonesia for an interactive version of this map. Map via Devy Kamil Syahbana on Twitter/ MAGMA Indonesia.
Overnight, Twitter began buzzing with updates on the volcano, which was reported by Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency (@infoBMKG on Twitter):
Seperti diinformasikan oleh Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG), Badan Geologi, Kementerian ESDM bahwa telah terjadi erupsi G. Anak Krakatau, Lampung, pada hari Jumat 10 April 2020 pukul 21.58 WIB dan pukul 22.35 WIB.https://t.co/2JiXjTFNcA
— BMKG (@infoBMKG) April 11, 2020
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The tweet above may be translated:
… there was an eruption of G. Anak Krakatau, Lampung, on Friday, April 10, 2020, at 21:58 West Indonesia Time and 22:35 West Indonesia Time.
Geophysicist Mika McKinnon (@mikamckinnon on Twitter) provides some good background info on the eruption in the following tweet thread. Check McKinnon’s Twitter feed for updates. By the way, the image just below – which was widely circulated on Twitter – is probably not from last night’s eruption.
Meanwhile in Indonesia:
Krakatau is erupting. Again.
Krakatau erupted so fiercely in 1883 that it destroyed itself while wrecking devastation. This is Anak Krakatau, “Child of Krakatau” rebuilt by subsequent eruptions
This eruption is not unusual but it is dangerous. Stay away https://t.co/zQPutJICmr
— Mika McKinnon (@mikamckinnon) April 11, 2020
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Volcanologist Jess Phoenix (@jessphoenix2018 on Twitter) said that the April 10, 2020, eruption of Anak Krakatau represents the most activity seen from this volcano since 2018. Check Phoenix’s Twitter feed for updates, too.
Krakatau is experiencing a magmatic eruption and an ash/SO2 plume has reached 47,000 feet. Lava fountains are visible, too. This is the most activity it's produced since the eruption in late 2018 caused a tsunami that killed folks in Java. https://t.co/f7nidMesdM
— Jess Phoenix ? (@jessphoenix2018) April 11, 2020
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Volcanologist Devy Kamil Syahbana (@volcanohawk on Twitter) in Indonesia provided more images.
Anak Krakatau is erupting now. The first image is from our webcam:https://t.co/O8KFco7NOx
The second photo was taken from our observatory (~43 km from the volcano). pic.twitter.com/nlHHWIyuAw
— Dr. Devy Kamil Syahbana ? (@volcanohawk) April 10, 2020
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Bottom line: Anak Krakatau – in English, Child of Krakatau – began erupting on April 10, 2020. The eruption is not thought to be major. Webcams caught its beauty.
Source:
https://earthsky.org/earth/anak-krakatau-volcano-eruption-april-2020