On February 14, 2007, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this image of a volcanic plume from the Rabaul Volcano, on the northeastern tip of New Britain. This image shows the plume wafting toward the southeast, over St. George’s Channel. The pale color of the plume suggests that it contains more water vapor than ash.
Rabaul Volcano is a pyroclastic shield volcano that resembles an old warrior shield with its wide, largely flat shape. It is composed of the remains of pyroclastic flows—mixtures of ash, pumice, and rock fragments. In 1994, a severe eruption from this volcano caused the temporary evacuation of Rabaul City.
NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team.
