Was Krakatau’s 1883 eruption the loudest sound in history?

The 1883 eruption of Krakatau was powerful enough to tear apart much of the volcanic island, trigger devastating tsunamis and send pressure waves around the world. Its most destructive explosions came on Aug. 27, when the volcano in the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra entered its final catastrophic phase.

The largest blast has been estimated at about 310 decibels, a level widely described as the loudest sound heard in modern history. Historical reports said the explosions could be heard in Perth, Western Australia, about 3,110 kilometers away, and on Rodrigues, near Mauritius, roughly 4,800 kilometers from Krakatau.

The decibel scale is logarithmic. Normal conversation is about 60 decibels, while loud concerts can exceed 100. Sounds above roughly 120 decibels can cause pain and hearing damage. At 310 decibels, Krakatau’s explosion was not simply an exceptionally loud noise, but an immense pressure disturbance produced by the energy of the eruption.

That pressure wave traveled even farther than the sound. Atmospheric instruments recorded disturbances around the world, and the wave circled the globe more than three times. The event showed how an enormous volcanic explosion can transmit energy across oceans and continents.

The sound was only one part of the disaster. Tsunamis struck coastal areas around the Sunda Strait, with the largest waves estimated at more than 30 meters high in some locations. Pyroclastic flows and surges also affected Java and Sumatra. The eruption released an estimated 200 megatons of TNT energy and killed at least 36,417 people, making it one of the deadliest volcanic events in recorded history.