Krakatoa is a volcanic island in the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra in Indonesia.

It has erupted repeatedly, massively and with disastrous consequences throughout recorded history.

The best known eruption culminated in a series of massive explosions on August 26-27, 1883.

The combined effects of pyroclastic flows, volcanic ashes and tsunamis had disastrous results in the region.

The official death toll recorded by the Dutch authorities was 36,417 and many settlements were destroyed, including Teluk Betung and Ketimbang in Sumatra, and Sirik and Semarang in Java.

The eruption also produced erratic weather and spectacular sunsets throughout the world for many months afterwards, as a result of sunlight reflected from suspended dust particles ejected by the volcano high into Earth's atmosphere.

This worldwide volcanic dust veil acted as a solar radiation filter, reducing the amount of sunlight reaching the surface of the earth.

In the year following the eruption, global temperatures were lowered by as much as 1.2 degrees Celsius on average.

Weather patterns continued to be chaotic for years, and temperatures did not return to normal until 1888.

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