Where on Earth: Tambora

Produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute’s Office of Public Outreach in collaboration with the NASA Earth Observatory (https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/).

Story adapted from Image of the Day post: https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/39412/mount-tambora-volcano-sumbawa-island-indonesia

(SPEECH)

[GENTLE MUSIC]

 

(DESCRIPTION)

Collage of distinct satellite images of natural phenomena.

 

Text, where on earth? Satellite image, a large geographic phenomenon in center casts a shadow.

 

Text, what is this feature? A, a sinkhole in Florida, B, a lava dome in Chile, C, an impact crater in Arizona, D, a volcanic caldera in Indonesia.

 

D is highlighted, a volcanic caldera in Indonesia. Labels appear on map.

 

Text, Mount Tambora, Indonesia. The crater at the summer of Mount Tambora is the result of an eruption that occurred on April 10, 1815, the most explosive volcanic eruption in history.

 

Searing hot pyroclastic flows raced down the mountain, while ash and gas were ejected into the atmosphere. Expedition 20 Crew, International Space Station, March 6, 2009. Lines point to layered deposits and crater lake in the image.

 

Text, Tiny volcanic particles spread around the globe, blocking sunlight, and causing an episode of global cooling that resulted in 1816's catastrophic year without a summer.

 

The map recedes until we have the whole Earth before us . Text, Music courtesy of Yesh Music A S C A P .

 

Where on earth?