The eruption of an undersea volcano in January of 2022 put large volumes of water vapor into the atmosphere. Water vapor comprises 95% of the greenhouse gases.
The volcano is located about 2200 miles east of Australia, near the island nation of Tonga under 490 feet of ocean water. It is that depth which contributed to the large volume of water expelled.
According to NASA:
“When the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano erupted on Jan. 15, it sent a tsunami racing around the world and set off a sonic boom that circled the globe twice. The underwater eruption in the South Pacific Ocean also blasted an enormous plume of water vapor into Earth’s stratosphere – enough to fill more than 58,000 Olympic-size swimming pools [about 38 billion gallons]. The sheer amount of water vapor could be enough to temporarily affect Earth’s global average temperature.”
Source. [Note: this source also shows satellite video of the volcanic explosion].
A recent paper in Nature estimates that the explosion produced an “unprecedented increase in the global stratospheric water mass by 13%…” (Source)
Dr. Roy Spencer, head of the UAH satellite system reports:
“July 2023 was an unusual month, with sudden warmth and a few record or near-record high temperatures.
Since the satellite record began in 1979, July 2023 was:
*warmest July on record (global average)
*warmest absolute temperature (since July is climatologically the warmest month)
*tied with March 2016 for the 2nd warmest monthly anomaly (departure from normal for any month)
*warmest Southern Hemisphere land anomaly
*warmest July for tropical land (by a wide margin, +1.03 deg. C vs. +0.44 deg. C in 2017)
These results suggest something peculiar is going on. It’s too early for the developing El Nino in the Pacific to have much effect on the tropospheric temperature record. The Hunga Tonga sub-surface ocean volcano eruption and its ‘unprecedented’ production of extra stratospheric water vapor could be to blame.” (Source)
This event shows again that nature is in charge of global climate, not the 0.1% of greenhouse gasses produced by carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels.
See also:
Hottest Day Ever? Nope, Just Fake News
wryheat 