Wednesday June 1 2022North Sumatra is indeed famous for its lakes, but is that the only beautiful tourist area there? So, do you know about Mount Toba? The mountain, which is located not far from the lake, is a giant volcano or also known as a super volcano. So when you are traveling to Samosir Island, the remnants of this mountain will be easy for you to see.
The size of this mountain is also relatively large, even still active. It is thought to have last erupted about 74,000 years ago. The eruption was quite powerful, just imagine from the eruption that destroyed most of the ancient human population.
Although Mount Tambora and Mount Krakatau are world-famous eruptions, the eruption of Mount Toba itself is reportedly more than that of the two mountains. Uniquely, Mount Toba's letsuan is not recorded in the book at all. You also need to know that Mount Toba is the only super volcano in Indonesia.
What is the evidence of the awesomeness of this mountain? So, instead of getting curious, just take a look at some of the information below which will discuss about this evidence.
Scientific Evidence
Scientific evidence is also one of the strong foundations for the glory of this mountain. In 1939, Dutch geologist Van Bemmelen reported that Lake Toba, which has a length of about 100 kilometers and a width of 30 kilometers, is surrounded by pumice left over from a volcanic eruption.
Therefore, Van Bemmelen concluded that Toba is a volcano. Even the eruption of Mount Toba itself was thrown into the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal. Can not imagine how big the eruption of this mountain.
It can be underlined that Toba itself was formed from a very powerful volcanic eruption, to this day research on this matter has not ended. So there are still many mysteries behind this sleeping giant.
Being on the Three Tectonic Plates
Mount Toba itself is prone to disasters. This is related to Indonesia's position which is located at the confluence of three tectonic plates, namely the Eurasian, Indo-Australian and Pacific Plate.
These plates are also alive, because almost every year they shift or collide with other plates by a certain distance. For example, the Indo-Australian Plate collides with the Eurasian Plate by 5-7 cm per year. Or the Pacific Plate is shifting relative to the Eurasian plate by 11 cm per year. Usually the process, called subduction or infiltration.
Mount Toba itself is a subduction mountain. Although now it is no longer in the form of a mountain, the remnants of the eruption are still visible. Did you know that Lake Toba itself is a caldera formed by the eruption of Mount Toba three times.
The part that was thrown by the eruption of this mountain reached an area of 100 km x 30 km sq. The remaining area then forms a caldera. In the middle then appears Samosir Island. No wonder if you are on the island, it feels very beautiful and natural atmosphere.
The Super Eruption of Mount Toba
Well, talking about the super eruption of this mountain, there are some unique facts that you need to know. It turns out that this mountain has erupted three times. For the first eruption, it happened about 800 thousand years ago. This eruption produced a caldera in the south of Lake Toba, covering the Prapat and Porsea areas.
The second eruption of this mountain did have a smaller force, exactly about 500 thousand years ago. Although the power is smaller, this eruption managed to form a caldera in the north of Lake Toba. Precisely in the area between Silalahi and Haranggaol. Finally the third eruption and is the most powerful, exactly 74,000 years ago. This eruption also produced a caldera and became Lake Toba with Samosir Island in the middle.
Why is it classified as a supervolcano?
Apart from the violent eruption, it turns out that this mountain is included in the Supervolvano category because it has a large magma pocket, so it has an output that produces a very large caldera. Can touch up to tens of kilometers.
There is also a unique thing in this mountain area, namely the occurrence of a gravitational anomaly. According to the law of gravity, one place to another will have the same gravitational force if it has the same mass, height and relative.
If there is other material with a different mass, then the attraction is also different, Imagine a volcano erupting, a lot of material coming out, that also means losing mass and the attraction is reduced, Then there is an uplift, this is what causes Samosir Island.
What Happens If This Mountain Erupts Again?
It's not that this mountain is sleeping it won't wake up and show off its abilities. Because someday it will erupt too. However, no one can accurately say when it will erupt again. So, what are the things that can happen if Mount Toba erupts again? First, millions of tons of sulfuric acid would make the world completely dark. Second, of course there will be many victims, as if life will die. Third, the ocean becomes very cold and the weather is extreme for decades.
So what about the information about Mount Toba above? Hopefully it can be one of your guides to get to know this mountain better. Indeed, the natural beauty in Indonesia is very diverse, isn't it and this mountain is also proof of that.
Literally learned about this place just yesterday that's so cool but I'd love to try it one day. You're article is amazing by the way