New islands appear after Indonesia’s Anak Krakatau volcano erupts
The Hindu – International
You are logged in
Loading…
You don’t have any Active Subscription.
Subscribed with another email? Logout and Login with that one.
Your active subscription(s)
Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials,
Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription
Products you’ve access to
Additional Subscription Benefits
Account Settings
Need help with your subscription?
Weather News October 2, 2026 e-Paper
The View From India
Looking at World Affairs from the Indian perspective.
First Day First Show
News and reviews from the world of cinema and streaming.
Today's Cache
Your download of the top 5 technology stories of the day.
Science For All
The weekly newsletter from science writers takes the jargon out of science and puts the fun in!
Data Point
Decoding the headlines with facts, figures, and numbers
THEdge
At the cutting edge of education and careers
Health Matters
Ramya Kannan writes to you on getting to good health, and staying there
Gender Agenda
Stories from beyond the binary.
The Hindu On Books
Books of the week, reviews, excerpts, new titles and features.
Weather News October 2, 2026 e-Paper
Published – October 02, 2026 02:01 pm IST – Jakarta
The Krakatau Volcano.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto
Two new islands have emerged in the waters surrounding Mount Anak Krakatau following a major eruption last month that grounded flights for days, the Head of Indonesia's Volcano Monitoring Agency said on Friday (October 2, 2026).
The islands were spotted in satellite images of the water-filled caldera in which Anak Krakatau stands, Rita Susilawati of the PVMBG Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation told AFP.
"Based on an evaluation of Sentinel satellite imagery, two formations resembling small islands can be seen around Mount Anak Krakatau" in the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra islands, she added.
Sentinel is a fleet of Earth observation spacecraft developed by the European Space Agency.
One of the islands was located about 760 metres northwest of Mount Anak Krakatau, the other about 495 metres southwest.
Ms. Rita said it was too early to refer to the islands as "children" of Mount Anak Krakatau — which itself was formed by an underwater eruption in the caldera or depression left behind after the massive 1883 blowout of the original Krakatau volcano.
"Anak" means child in Bahasa Indonesia.
Ms. Rita said further research was needed to determine if the new islands were emerging from the base of the caldera in a similar way than Anak Krakatau did, or whether they were formed by deposits of volcanic material.
In the case of Anak Krakatau, several landmasses briefly emerged starting in 1927 and then disappeared due to erosion before an enduring island formed in 1930, she added.
The two new islands may similarly be eroded away over time.
Mount Anak Krakatau erupted for 25 hours non-stop in September, blanketing cities in volcanic ash and prompting multiple airports to close.
ALSO WATCH Watch: Indonesia: Anak Krakatau volcano erupts; flights cancelled at Jakarata airport
More than 300,000 passengers were left stranded.
Ms. Rita said Anak Krakatau was at alert Level 2, the second lowest out of four danger categories.
People are advised not to approach within three kilometres (1.86 miles) of the eruption centre.
Five journalists on a mission to cover the September eruption were declared presumed dead with three boat crew nearly two weeks after the vessel they were travelling in disappeared without trace.
Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity.
ALSO WATCH Indonesia’s Volcanoes Erupt Again: Why the Country Is So Vulnerable?
Published – October 02, 2026 02:01 pm IST
Copyright© 2026, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved.
BACK TO TOP
Terms & conditions | Institutional Subscriber
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.
Fonte: The Hindu – International