With an explosive force of approximately 800 million tons of TNT, the eruption of Mount Tambora on April 10, 1815, in Sumbawa, Indonesia, is the most significant explosion in human history.
Tambora is a volcano located on the island of Sumbawa, Indonesia, standing at an elevation of 2,772 meters above sea level. The 1815 eruption of Tambora is marked as the strongest volcanic eruption in modern history.
It is estimated that around 10,000 people died directly from the eruption, while approximately 70,000 people perished due to the climatic aftermath it caused.
Before the eruption, Mount Tambora had an elevation of about 4,300 meters, but afterward, its height was reduced to approximately 2,850 meters.
The 72-Hour Tragedy
No one could have predicted that the largest volcanic disaster in modern history would occur in just… three days.
Tambora erupts approximately 300-500 million kg of magma every second. (Illustration)
“Awakening” at 7 PM on April 10, 1815, Mount Tambora began its eruption, leading to a disaster that resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands.
It is estimated that Tambora expelled around 300-500 million kg of magma per second! The sound of its explosion could be heard from as far away as Sumatra, approximately 2,600 km from the eruption site.
The impact of the 1815 volcanic eruption.
The Terrifying Destruction of Tambora
The eruption of Mount Tambora is estimated to have an explosive force equivalent to about 800 million tons of TNT, more than 14 times that of the Tsar Bomb. According to the volcanic explosivity index, the Tambora eruption is classified as a level 7, meaning it was extremely dangerous. It is estimated that over 140 billion tons of magma were expelled from this natural disaster.
The volcano created an ash column reaching heights of 43 km, dispersing ash into the atmosphere and surrounding the Earth.
Hot flows of lava erupted from the volcano’s mouth at a height of about 4,000 meters, causing 10,000 deaths due to the inability to evacuate in time.
The volcanic eruption released an estimated 50 billion cubic meters of ash, dust, lava, and gases. A massive amount of sulfur dioxide (SO2) also entered the atmosphere.
The ash cloud from Mount Tambora caused global temperatures to drop by 0.4 to 0.7 degrees Celsius.
The ash cloud from Mount Tambora caused global temperatures to decrease by 0.4 to 0.7 degrees Celsius. The following year, many areas in Europe and North America experienced a summer devoid of warmth.
This ash covered the Sun, making 1816 the second coldest year on record. Crop failures and famine spread throughout Europe and North America.
In fact, the Pennsylvania River even froze over in mid-August during summer. As a result, this disastrous year was dubbed “the year without a summer.”
In 1920, American climatologist William J. Humphreys provided the first detailed explanation for this phenomenon, suggesting that the eruption had blown ash into the stratosphere.
Subsequently, winds helped spread the ash worldwide. This ash cloud created a layer that reflected heat from the Sun, evidenced by red-brown snow falling in Hungary and Italy, believed to be due to volcanic ash in the atmosphere.
Mount Tambora today.
Frost devastated crops in Canada and the New England region of the United States. Europe also suffered due to the drop in temperatures.
In China, the monsoon became excessively strong, causing severe flooding.
In India, the absence of humid winds led to severe droughts, followed by floods, resulting in the spread of diseases and mutated cholera bacteria that adapted more efficiently. This event is a reason why cholera continues to threaten humanity to this day.
In the Arctic, temperatures unexpectedly rose, causing ice to melt, creating a Northwest Passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
After the disaster, agriculture and the environment were devastated, with the death toll from food shortages reaching 82,000.
While leaving a heavy toll, the eruption of Mount Tambora also contributed to significant impacts in science and art.
The painting by Joseph Mallord William Turner depicting the disaster of Mount Tambora.
The consequences of Mount Tambora also left an imprint on science and art.
Scientists believe that the ash cloud from Mount Tambora inspired the creation of many unusual sunset paintings by Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851), a famous British painter.
In Europe, the price of oats, used as horse feed, skyrocketed, prompting German inventor Karl Drais to create a form of transportation that did not require horse power, known as the “running machine.” This invention is considered the “ancestor” of the modern bicycle.
