Investigation of anomalous lightning activity during the January 15, 2022 Tonga volcano eruption based on measurements of the VLF and ELF electromagnetic fields

Abstract

An anomalous increase in the level of Very Low Frequency (VLF, 3–30 kHz) and Extremely Low Frequency (ELF, 3–3000 Hz) radio noise and the rate of VLF atmospherics was registered during the explosive eruption of the Tonga volcano on January 15, 2022 at the Akademik Vernadsky station (65.246°S; 64.257°W) about 8870 km from the volcano. At the peak activity around 5 UT, the number of atmospherics in 2-min intervals increased by almost 15 times compared to the period preceding the eruption. At this point, the estimated rate reached 360 VLF atmospherics per second. At the same time, an increase in the power spectral density of the magnetic field by 5–9 times was observed in both the ELF and VLF ranges. After 40 min, only on ELF an increased peak lasting ∼10 min was observed, comparable in magnitude to the main peak. According to the Worldwide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN), increased thunderstorm activity was concentrated very close to the volcano during this period. This discrepancy between the intensities of ELF and VLF radiation suggests a significant difference in the parameters of currents in lightning discharges occurring in the area of the volcano vent and in the area of the volcanic ash plume.