Myth about Krakatau

One of the colorful myths about this volcano is that it once erupted long ago. It filled the sky with ash and pelted the earth with lava. Many lightning storms took place and rain poured down, eventually extinguishing the volcano's great flames. With a loud cry of anguish, the volcano sank into the ground with water filling it. This separated the islands of Java and Sumatra and created the Sunda Straight. 

Now first of all, it wasn't that much of a myth. Second of all, only half was really about Krakatau. We assume there aren't many myths about the volcano, because it is at least 25 miles away from land itself.

Anak Krakatau

After the giant explosion it still isn't over. In December 1927, submarine activity from the caldera was reported. On January 28, 1987, the rim of the volcano emerged from the water. Now it erupts many times every few months. It does have a few trees due to the soil though

The scream

Ever wonder why this man is screaming? Well, although it isn't the official reason, the ash of Krakatau turned the sky a deep red-orange globally. So is really screaming about Krakatau!

News Stories

New Zealand -Telegram from the The Poverty Bay Herald and East Coast Newsletter- Tuesday August 28th, 1883 : “BATAVIA [now Djakarta], August 27. A volcano has broken out on the island of Cracka, in the Straits of Sunda. The outburst is terrific, and is plainly visible from this town. News is to hand from Anger and Sering, on the Java coast, and states that a serious influx of sea has been experienced, and much damage has been caused to both places.”

 The Herald of August 30th reported that a sharp earthquake was reported at “Lockhampton” (Rockhampton) on the morning of 29th August in a telegram from Brisbane, Australia.

 A further telegram from Batavia (Djakarta): “The tidal wave experienced at Anger, on the coast of this island has caused the complete destruction of the place, and great loss of life. The recent volcanic eruption on Cracatoa (Krakatau) and the marine disturbances have completely changed the Straits of Sunda, and navigation of the passage is now attended with great danger.”

 From New York on August 30th: “Exceptionally high tides have been experienced along the Atlantic sea-board, and, owing to the invasion of the sea, serious damage has been caused at several coast towns”.

 Throughout the week, concerns had been held for the vessel Clansman en route from Lyttelton to Auckland. She was long overdue, and nothing had been seen of her in the turbulent waters caused by the southerly storms and tsunami. She limped into Auckland Harbour on Saturday September 1st in a very battered condition, an epic 23 days out from Lyttelton. The Herald noted that she: “Experienced a succession of gales and had her deck swept by enormous seas. Arrived in battered condition.” In the same issue a telegram from London: “reports from Java estimate 30,000 lives lost due to the tidal wave.”

Superlative

This volcano has many different "characteristics". It is deadly, it's loud, it's explosive and very destructive. Over all we think it is most destructive.

Thanks to all of our sources.

All links are present in the toolbar

Dr. Nicolus B. Carter, Once in a Blue Moon, White Jag, <http://www.bcrescue.org/krakatau.html>

Katherain V. Kashman, Krakatau, World Book Encyclopedia, 2007

San Diego State University, Krakatau, Indonesia (1883) How volcanoes work,Department of geological sciences, <http://www.geology.sdsu.edu/how_volcanoes_work/Krakatau.html>

Smithsonian Institute, Natural Museum of Natural History, “The Global Volcanism Project” <http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/volcano.cfm?vnum=0602-00=>

Wild Land (powered by word press), “The 1883 Krakatau Eruption- A Colonial View” Wild Land- <http://wildland.owdjim.gen.nz/?p=437>

This is somewhat of an example of about one two-thousandth of Krakatau's power. Tee-hee.

World Map

This is a world map with Krakatau labeled with a line and an orange dot, and strange cartoon.

1883 eruption

Many small earthquakes happened around Krakatau from the year 1877 to the year 1883, then finally in 1883 the volcano exploded. It was ten times the magnitude of Mt. St. Helens and 2,000 times the force of the largest nuclear explosion. It was heard over 2,700 miles away.  It destroyed half the island and caused unthinkable natural disasters. Ash was thrown into the sky and caused world wide temperature drop of around 3 degrees Fahrenheit.  There were a number of different characteristics including: Central vent eruption, Submarine eruption, Explosive eruption, Pyroclastic flows, Fumarolic activity, mudflow or lahars, tsunamis, debris avalanche, and eventually caldera collapse. The pyroclastic flows that were spread over 10 miles. The explosion was heard over 2,500 miles away. But the real problem was the water. This was the cause for almost all of the 36,000 deaths. It swept across Java and Sumatra, two gigantic islands and populated islands 295 towns and villages were destroyed. Water rose around the world. New York had an above average high tide an hour early. 

 

Wow

On the day of the first eruption ash was carried all around the world many people saw the sun and moon turn blue green and even pink. Some said it was a beauty. The eruption also however turned the sky black with ash. It also caused lightning, wind, and huge waves in the ocean to form near Krakatau. Dust, ash, and gases made it hard to breath all around the island.

Map of Krakatau

Maps of the Krakatau Island. These pictures gives you a good idea that the island is near many other islands. The large islands are Java and Sumatra, the   bordering islands of Indonsia. Java is an average of about 26 miles away from Krakatau. Sumatra is an average of about 25 miles away. Java has about 124 million inhabitants, while Sumatra has about 45 million people. Not too great for an island next to a volcano.

Basic information

The island krakatau is considered most likely got its name from sanskrit, but there are a few other ideas.  It comes from the word This volcano used to be a stratovolcano. Now it is a caldera that was half blown up. The child that emerged in the middle is a small, yet very active cinder cone. It formed on a subduction zone. The old volcano was about 2667 ft tall, (813m). It is located in the Sunda Straight in between the islands of Java and Sumatra on the west coast of Indonisia. The 1883 eruption caused lots of damage to the nearby islands. Fortunately for most, the real deadly volcano is extinct. It currently has a small child, the Anak Krakatau. It is dormant, but frequently erupts. The last eruption was on October 23, 2007 to August 30, 2008.

Lively?

I've already said that this volcano has been extremely catastrophic, but strangely enough there is a good amount of life on the island. Since almost no humans have been on this island, it has had time to develop a small, yet living rainforst. It has a small ecosystem. After the 1883 explosion, most of the island and everything on it was wiped out. But eventually it started replenish its self. First seeds were spread on the island by wind or water. Trees started to develop on the island, and some creatures started to come over. Bats, birds, butterflies and many other animals started to develop on the island. They ate fruit and spread seeds starting a cycle of a small ecosystem. Eventually it grew about 80 different plant species with a fair amount of animals.