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2022 was a busy year for volcanic eruptions with Hawaii's , along with  and the in Tonga. While the  is the primary agency that monitors volcanic activity in the United States, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) oversees safety systems for tsunamis and other volcano-related threats, as well as studies the impact of volcanic gasses on our global climate. 

When a volcano erupts, NOAA provides data, satellite imagery and other information used in air quality alerts, ashfall advisories, and tsunami warnings. Mauna Loa, located on the big island of Hawaii, erupted in 2022 for the first time since 1984. During this eruption, , NOAA and partners released  to protect people from , a hazy mixture of sulfur dioxide gas and particulate matter. 

NOAA’s GOES WEST Satellite was used  to track  from Mauna Loa in order to create . These advisories are used in aviation safety warnings. Local NOAA weather forecast offices used these advisories as well as information from the  to keep aviation officials updated on local conditions. When  in Alaska in 2009, NOAA provided . These volcanic ash advisories were issued in close interagency coordination with the USGS for rapid, cohesive delivery of information to decision-makers in emergency management and air traffic. 

Some volcanic eruptions are powerful enough to trigger tsunamis, such as the  which triggered one of the largest and most destructive tsunamis ever recorded. Today, NOAA has an advanced  in place to alert communities that are at risk of tsunami conditions after a volcanic eruption. In 2022, the  triggered a tsunami across the Pacific. Immediately after the eruption, tsunami advisories were initiated by a network of NOAA  buoys. DART buoys are currently  throughout the world’s ocean basins and send real-time data to  so critical alerts can be issued before any surge of water reaches coastal communities. 

The Hunga Tonga eruption also created a 300 mile (500 km) wide plume of toxic gas and ash that traveled into the stratosphere, which provided NOAA scientists with a rare opportunity to . Scientists quickly traveled to remote Reunion Island in the middle of the Indian Ocean where they deployed a collection of scientific weather balloons equipped with  (POPS) to collect detailed atmospheric data. POPS are lightweight aerosol sensors that collect data used to refine atmospheric models and improve researchers’ understanding of how volcanic explosions affect the Earth’s atmosphere. This collaboration marked the  to a volcanic eruption to date. 

Paradoxically, volcanoes provide ideal locations for  due to their undisturbed air, remote location, and minimal influences of vegetation and human activity. This is why the Mauna Loa volcano is home to the  which has continuously monitored and collected  related to atmospheric change since the 1950's. The continuous study of greenhouse gasses which warm the climate, and volcanic gasses which can temporarily cool the climate improves researchers’ understanding of how these emissions interact and impact our atmosphere and global climate.  In December 2022 the lava flow of the volcano caused Mauna Loa Observatory to lose power, and  to begin gathering measurements of CO2 at nearby Maunakea. The observatory building was not directly impacted and efforts are underway to begin measurements at Mauna Loa again.

NOAA’s research of volcanic eruptions is imperative for improving our current technologies and models used to issue warnings and advisories for tsunamis, ashfall, and air quality associated with volcanic eruptions. It also improves our understanding of how volcanic emissions and greenhouse gas emissions impact our atmosphere and global climate.