<p>From a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_submarine_volcanoes" rel="noreferrer">list &amp; map of known seamounts and submarine volcanoes</a> it is unlikely the orange region in your picture is a submarine volcano.</p>

<p>The <a href="https://www.mapsofworld.com/answers/world/how-deep-is-pacific-ocean/" rel="noreferrer">average depth of the Pacific Ocean</a> is 4280 m. At such a depth, a submarine volcanic eruption would not produce such a large area of illumination.</p>

<p>It is more likely that the orange region in your picture is <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunglint" rel="noreferrer">sunglint</a>, which is, </p>

<blockquote>
  <p>a phenomenon that occurs when sunlight reflects off the surface of the ocean at the same angle that a satellite or other sensor is viewing the surface. In the affected area of the image, smooth ocean water becomes a silvery mirror, while rougher surface waters appear dark.</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2018-01-11T19:00:20.433Z
[This page](https://www.earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=87675&eocn=home&eoci=iotd_image) has an animated GIF of the moon's shadow crossing Earth where the sunglint is visible (and explained in the text).
Keith McClary
CC BY-SA 3.0
2018-01-11T12:14:16.447Z
2018-01-11T12:14:16.447Z
Fred
<p>Is it a volcano in this image ?</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/Aqgot.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/Aqgot.png" alt="this image"></a></p>

<p>The magnified version.</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/IOxgr.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/IOxgr.png" alt="magnified"></a></p>

<p>I was browsing through earth images <a href="https://epic.gsfc.nasa.gov/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">here</a> when I spotted this orange thing. Is it some oceanic volcano?</p>

<p>It may be an absurd question but is it a discovery?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2018-01-11T12:01:32.723Z
There are no active or inactive volcanos there. It's sunglint. Related, on the astronomy.SE site: [Does Sun have a reflection on Earth?](https://astronomy.stackexchange.com/questions/11037/does-sun-have-a-reflection-on-earth).
David Hammen
CC BY-SA 3.0
2018-01-11T12:02:38.430Z
if this had been a volcano it had been the size of the continental usa and it had probably been mentioned on the news,so what you see is only reflected sunlight.the yellowstone super volcano will be about a thousand times smaller than what you see on this picture
trond hansen
<volcanology><geography><earth-observation>
Volcano in ocean?
Chief VOLDEMORT
# Volcano in ocean?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2018-01-11)

Is it a volcano in this image ?

[![this image](https://i.sstatic.net/Aqgot.png)](https://i.sstatic.net/Aqgot.png)

The magnified version.

[![magnified](https://i.sstatic.net/IOxgr.png)](https://i.sstatic.net/IOxgr.png)

I was browsing through earth images [here](https://epic.gsfc.nasa.gov/) when I spotted this orange thing. Is it some oceanic volcano?

It may be an absurd question but is it a discovery?

**Tags:** volcanology, geography, earth-observation

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: There are no active or inactive volcanos there. It's sunglint. Related, on the astronomy.SE site: [Does Sun have a reflection on Earth?](https://astronomy.stackexchange.com/questions/11037/does-sun-have-a-reflection-on-earth).  
> **username_2**: if this had been a volcano it had been the size of the continental usa and it had probably been mentioned on the news,so what you see is only reflected sunlight.the yellowstone super volcano will be about a thousand times smaller than what you see on this picture  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2018-01-11. Score: 10 | Accepted answer

From a [list & map of known seamounts and submarine volcanoes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_submarine_volcanoes) it is unlikely the orange region in your picture is a submarine volcano.

The [average depth of the Pacific Ocean](https://www.mapsofworld.com/answers/world/how-deep-is-pacific-ocean/) is 4280 m. At such a depth, a submarine volcanic eruption would not produce such a large area of illumination.

It is more likely that the orange region in your picture is [sunglint](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunglint), which is,

> a phenomenon that occurs when sunlight reflects off the surface of the ocean at the same angle that a satellite or other sensor is viewing the surface. In the affected area of the image, smooth ocean water becomes a silvery mirror, while rougher surface waters appear dark.

> **Comments:**
> **username_4**: [This page](https://www.earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=87675&eocn=home&eoci=iotd_image) has an animated GIF of the moon's shadow crossing Earth where the sunglint is visible (and explained in the text).  

---

