On January 15, 2022, a submarine volcano erupted in the Kingdom of Tonga, an island country in the South Pacific. After the disaster, the State Key Laboratory of Satellite Ocean Environment Dynamics of SIO responded quickly, started disaster emergency remote sensing monitoring and service, extracted disaster information by comprehensively utilizing the data of domestic GF-1, Jilin-1, European Sentinel-2 and other satellites, prepared the “Emergency Monitoring and Analysis Report on Tonga Volcano and Tsunami Disasters”, and submitted it to the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) and International Charter on Space and Major Disasters (Charter). The report, published by Charter for global sharing, has drawn wide attention from the international community.

Monitoring results show that after a volcanic eruption on Hunga Haapai in Tonga, the volcanic ash covered a large area of vegetation and buildings on Tongatapu, the main island of the Kingdom of Tonga, and surrounding islands. Tsunami triggered by volcanic eruption hit the coast, wreaking havoc on coastal buildings and vegetation. What’s worse, volcanic eruption produced a large area of volcanic pumice in surrounding waters, which diffused with the ocean current, affecting the navigation safety and ecological environment of the sea area.

As the third monitoring report globally shared by Charter, the emergency analysis report released by the State Key Laboratory of Satellite Ocean Environmental Dynamics received a positive response from SPREP. SPREP proposed further monitoring needs to SIO, and the project team will further monitor and evaluate the impact of volcanic ash on the ecological environment of islands and coral reefs according to local actual needs.

The International Charter for Space and Major Disasters (Charter), founded in 2000, is one of the most successful international disaster reduction organizations in the world today. China formally joined the Charter in 2007. The Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), a key intergovernmental organization for environment and sustainable development in the Pacific Region, is responsible for protecting and managing the environment and natural resources in the Pacific Region to ensure sustainable development for present and future generations.