Northeast Lau Response Cruise 2009: West Mata Prometheus Flame

This video shows an eruption of the West Mata volcano, discovered in May 2009. The eruption occurred nearly 4,000 feet below the surface of the Pacific Ocean, in an area bounded by Fiji, Tonga and Samoa. Scientists funded by NOAA and the National Science Foundation recorded this footage that, in 2009, represented the deepest erupting volcano yet discovered. Scientists described high-definition video of the undersea eruption as spectacular. “We found a type of lava never before seen erupting from an active