Sea Quake

Underwater Eruption

An underwater volcano sent spurts of steam and ash shooting up into the sky near Tonga (halfway between Australia and Tahiti) in the South Pacific this week.

Experts say there's no danger to people living near the coast of the island and no one has been evacuated.

Scientists, who think the eruption was triggered by a big earthquake deep beneath the ocean bed, sailed close to the site to check it out. They say it's on part of the Pacific "ring of fire" – a volcanic zone where continental plates in the earth's crust collide.

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