A lack of recovery of the marine ecosystem around the area of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai (HTHH) volcano, surprised an international team of scientists who have been researching the area for several weeks.
“We expected to see more biological species in the water column, as well as on the sea floor but that was not the case,” said Chief Scientist Dr. Rebecca Carey, on board the RV Investigator, back in Nuku'alofa this week.
The team found out that the marine life around HTHH is recovering only very slowly, three years after the 2022 eruption of Tonga’s underwater Hunga Volcano - the largest volcanic eruption recorded in over a century - which devastated the marine ecosystems within 100 kilometres of the site.
Original Article: Tonga - Slow recovery of HTHH marine ecosystem surprises scientists
