The tsunami that hit Fiji last month damaged an undersea cable that connected the Pacific island to the rest of the world.
Satellite photographs show the moment an undersea volcano in Tonga erupted, causing a tsunami that wreaked havoc on the archipelago's coastline. Many homes were destroyed, and huge swaths of land were covered in ash. Image courtesy of KMA/Simon Proud/NCEO on Storyful
According to a top Fijian senator, SpaceX, Elon Musk's space exploration business, is looking to build a communications bridge to Tonga after a volcano explosion and tsunami cut the Pacific nation off from the rest of the globe last month.
According to a senior politician, this is due to internet and connectivity concerns. In addition, the disasters claimed the lives of 15 people and cut off Tonga's vital underwater cable that has a high-speed internet connection The volcanic eruption also produced a 1.2-inch-thick carpet of material across the 170-island Pacific archipelago.
SpaceX wants to send a team to Fiji to set up a station that would connect Tonga to the internet via its Starlink satellite service. Fiji's attorney-general, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, announced the preparations earlier this month. SpaceX has launched around 1,800 Starlink satellites and is operational in over 20 countries.
Tonga's recovery from natural calamities has been hampered by a recent Covid-19 outbreak, which prompted the government to declare the country closed last week.
Three individuals were murdered and Tonga's underwater cable, which transmits high-speed internet via Fiji, was severed in the disaster on Jan. 15. The explosion of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano also deposited a carpet of material up to 1.2 inches deep across the Pacific archipelago of some 170 islands.
