The atlas of the world has a freckle. Specifically, the new landmass is located 45 kilometers from Nuku'alofa , the capital of Tonga, an island country of Polynesia.
It is an island (or to be more precise, an islet) half a kilometer long that was formed as a result of the eruption of the Hunga-Tonga , active since December.
The violent awakening of this underwater volcano has created island number 176 in the archipelago, as Taaniela Kula, Minister of Lands of Tonga, has officially proclaimed. At the moment, it is not advisable to visit it, since the volcanic activity continues – acid rain falls within a radius of ten kilometers – and the new spot on the map, made of fragmented magma, is unstable.
However, there are those who ventured to see it up close, such as Gianpero Orbassano , a hotel businessman from Tonga. According to his testimony, it is quite high and the surface is hot, but there are already thousands of seabirds of all kinds laying eggs in its territory. Other observers say that there is a lake in the center and that it gives off a strong smell of sulfur .
