'Ghost Island' Appears And Disappears In Caspian Sea You Won't Believe How Quickly It Vanished

(MENAFN- Live Mint) A transient“ghost island”, born from a mud volcano eruption in the Caspian Sea, has captivated researchers. The island emerged in early 2023, only to recede into the sea by the end of 2024, offering a fleeting glimpse into the volatile forces beneath the Earth's surface.

According to NASA 's Earth Observatory, the island was a result of the powerful eruption of the Kumani Bank mud volcano , which lies about 25 kilometers (15 miles) off the eastern coast of Azerbaijan.

A sudden appearance and rapid erosion

NASA's Earth Observatory tracked the island's brief existence through images captured by the Operational Land Imager (OLI) and OLI-2 on the Landsat 8 and 9 satellites. In their November 2022 image, the crest of the Kumani Bank volcano remained submerged below the surface of the Caspian Sea. By February 14, 2023, a small island had emerged from the water, accompanied by a visible sediment plume drifting away from the site.

According to the Earth Observatory, the island appeared between January 30 and February 4, 2023, and was approximately 400 meters (1,300 feet) across. This observation was confirmed by Mark Tingay, a geologist from the University of Adelaide, who stated,“The Kumani Bank eruption produced an island with a sizable landmass, but it was short-lived.” Within a year, by the end of 2024, only a diminished portion of the Kumani Bank volcano remained visible above the water, having nearly eroded away completely.

History of Kumani Bank's eruptions

The Kumani Bank mud volcano is no stranger to producing transient islands. NASA's Earth Observatory noted that this is not the first time the volcano has produced a temporary landmass. Since its first recorded eruption in 1861, Kumani Bank has erupted numerous times, each creating islands of varying sizes that often disappeared within days or months.

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