Young Mountains that Never Silent

GARISBUMI.com – Anak Krakatau grew through eruption after eruption. Every time nature starts to green the slopes, ash and lava come to cover them again.

The sound was heard as far as the Pasauran Volcano Observation Post, Serang Regency, about 42 kilometers from Anak Krakatau.

The building's glass shook.

Night makes the mountain in the middle of the Sunda Strait difficult to see with the naked eye. However, an infrared camera captured the flames shooting up to 200 meters above the peak.

The events in July 2018 were not something completely new. Since emerging from the sea in 1929, Anak Krakatau has almost never remained silent for long.

Eruption is its way of growing.

Volcanic material that comes out of the crater falls and piles up on the slopes. Lava flows, then freezes. A new layer forms on top of the old layer. The body of the mountain continues to rise, while sea waves erode the edges.

For decades, this process took place over and over again.

In 2000, its height had reached around 315 meters above sea level. Its body volume is estimated at 5.52 cubic kilometers. The Geological Agency calculates its growth at an average of around four meters per year.

For humans, four meters is probably only the height of a house. However, the mountain increases this height every year, little by little, through countless eruptions.