Krakatau overview- Night foto taking tour - research

OVERVIEW

Early in the morning of May 20, 1883, the captain of the German warship Elizabeth reported seeing an ~11-km-high cloud of ash and dust rising above the uninhabited island of Krakatau, thus documenting the first eruption from this Indonesian island in at least two centures. Over the ensuing two months, crews on commercial vessels and sightseers on charted ships would experience similar spectacles, all of which were associated with explosive noises and churning clouds of black to incandescent ash and pumice. From a distance, the largest of these natural fanfares impressed the local inhabitants on the coastal plains of Java and Sumatra, creating a near-festive environment. Little did they realize, however, that these awe-inspiring displays were only a prelude to one of the largest eruptions in historic times. A series of cataclysmic explosions began at mid-day on August 26, and ended on August 27 with a stupendous paroxysmal eruption. On this day, the northern two-thirds of the island collapsed beneath the sea, generating a series of devasting pyroclastic flows and immense tsunamis that ravaged adjacent coastlines. The events that began on August 26 would mark the last 24 hours on earth for over 36,000 people, and the destruction of hundreds of coastal villages and towns.Read More

A night on Anak Krakatau (4. - 7. June 2009) The night from 6 to 7 June 2009 was spent by the VolcanoDiscovery group at about 500m south of the active crater of Anak Krakatau, close to a big boulder. The rock served well as a shelter protecting team members against about ten bombs which impacted nearby after a flying a trajectory of many hundred metres. Other close observations of the active vent were done from the sea on the mornings of 4 and 6 June.
At 500m from Anak's crater, close to a big rock (at the photo's right edge) which acted as a shelter.	Even minor explosions produce loud bangs and eject big bombs which then roll down Anak's flank.	A bigger explosion erupts huge bombs towards the right, which then break into many smaller rolling pieces.	Big eruptions illuminate the entire flanks by incadescent lava. Note the bomb very close at bottom right.
A one-second exposure at the beginning of an eruption well shows the rapid motion of flying bombs.	A 30-second exposure of the same eruption shows that sometimes bombs are ejected mostly in a vertical direction.	Striking contrast between a dark eruption cloud full of ash and a thunderstorm cloud in the background.	Another big eruption observed from the pine wood on the eastern side of Anak's flank (6 June).
The biggest bombs are so hot that they appear red even in bright daylight (4 June).	The beginning of a big explosion: note the ash trail of the biggest bombs at right (6 June).	This photo was taken few seconds after the previous one, with some bombs landing on the crater rim.	www.krakatautouring.com