A new island has been formed in the South Pacific near the Fiji Islands. The new island, which still hasn’t been named, appeared after the underwater volcano Hunga Tonga erupted. The island is 500m (1,640 feet) long and has been there since last December 2014.
Although the island is as pretty as the other islands in the area, there are varied opinions in regards to visiting the island:
– Gianpiero Orbassano, a hotel owner in Tonga, travelled with two friends and said that he felt safe in the island but that it was difficult to reach and the surface was a bit hot.
– Dr. Matthew Watson, a researcher at the University of Bristol, affirms that the surface of the island is highly unstable because of it’s formation. Since it’s just formed by magma, the island is formed basically by small pieces of rock, one on top top of the other.
An underwater volcano behaves differently from a common volcano and it’s possible that it’s still erupting. Currents and other types of erosion could destroy the island. For example, in 1831 an island appeared and was named Graham. It was disputed by Sicily, Britain, France and Spain but it disappeared six months after its formation.
But let’s be optimistic! The Island could stay still just like the Nijima island (900km from Tokyo) which was said to dissappear but its size has increased since 2013. The future is uncertain for the new island in Tonga, so we’ll have to wait a bit before we decide to start packing our bags and visit!
How about you? Would you go visit the island? Leave us a comment and let us know what you think!
