Hunga Tonga Cloud Destroyed 900 Mg of Methane a Day, Reshaping Climate Estimates
Updated
Updated · ScienceDaily · Sep 15
Hunga Tonga Cloud Destroyed 900 Mg of Methane a Day, Reshaping Climate Estimates
3 articles · Updated · ScienceDaily · Sep 15
Summary
Satellite data showed the Hunga Tonga plume kept destroying methane for more than a week after the 2022 eruption, with record formaldehyde levels tracing the reaction as the cloud drifted toward South America.
Researchers estimate the eruption released about 300 gigagrams of methane, while the plume removed roughly 900 megagrams a day through chlorine-driven chemistry triggered by ash, seawater salt and sunlight.
TROPOMI measurements from ESA's Sentinel-5P required unusual corrections for stratospheric altitude and heavy sulfur dioxide before scientists confirmed the formaldehyde signal was real.
The finding suggests volcanic ash and mineral dust may need to be added to the global methane budget and could inform efforts to speed atmospheric methane removal safely.
Methane drives about one-third of global warming and traps roughly 80 times more heat than CO2 over 20 years, making faster methane breakdown a potentially important near-term climate lever.