Volcanoes
S


Bizarro Earth

Tungurahua continues to erupt, Taal grows increasingly restless, explosions on Etna (and more)


Big Think
Mon, 09 May 2011 11:50 UTC
The light at the end of the finals tunnel has appeared - only one set of papers (where I posed to my volcanoes class the question "if someone asked you 'why bother monitoring volcanoes?', how would you respond?") to grade now. There hasn't been a lot of new eruption news, but there has been a lot of news of simmering volcanoes and threats from volcanoes after eruption. However, we'll start with one that is actively erupting.

Image
© UnknownTungurahua in Ecuador erupting during the first week of May, 2011.
Ecuador: Tungurahua continues with its largest eruption since 1999 (video) - and thanks to the bevy of news that Eruptions reader Kirby has sent me, there is a lot to cover. The Instituto Geofisico has put the volcano on Orange Alert status after strombolian activity produced 2-7km / 6,500-23,000 foot ash plumes and a constant sound of explosions/rumbling. The volcano is putting on an impressive show at the summit, with incandescent blocks cascading down the upper flanks of the volcano (see top left), some of which are apparently the size of cars. IG geologists have been quoted as saying the volcano is showing signs of "increased pressure", but the details are scarce. Crop and livestock damage due to the ash in the villages around Tungurahua has been extensive, and now the government will purchase new lands for refugees to move that are a safe distance from the volcano. Even with all this activity, Tungurahua did not stop people from voting in Ecuador.
Read More...
Attention

Guatemala: Alert in Two Areas for Volcanic Activity


Inside Costarica
Sat, 07 May 2011 16:32 UTC
Volcan Santiaguito
© C. Grandpey
Guatemalan departments of Quetzaltenango and Retalhuleu were declared this Friday in yellow alert due to the increased activity of the volcano Santiaguito.

According to the National Institute for Seismology, Vulcanology, Meteorology and Hydrology of Guatemala (Insivumeh), the increase is manifested in the number of explosions per hour.
Read More...
Phoenix

US: Volcano Watch: Kilauea activity update


Hawaii 24/7
Thu, 05 May 2011 10:51 UTC
Image
© USGS/HVOThe floor of Pu`u `Ō `ō crater continues its slow rise as lava pours out of a new vent at the base of the east wall. The height of the floor has risen 20 m (66 ft) over the past two weeks.
Lava erupted continuously within Pu'u 'O'o over the past week, feeding a small lava lake in the center of the crater. Changes in eruptive output commonly resulted in overflows from the lake that slowly built up the crater floor, which is about 70 m (230 ft) below the east rim of Pu'u 'O'o. No lava is erupting outside the crater.

A small, stable lava lake was also present deep within the Halema'uma'u Overlook vent during the past week. Volcanic gas emissions remain elevated, resulting in relatively high concentrations of sulfur dioxide downwind.
Read More...
Eye 1

Simmering Ecuadorian Volcano Spews Ash Sky High


NTD Television
Mon, 02 May 2011 16:20 UTC
Residents of Baños, Ecuador were doing what little they could on Saturday to clean their town of a thick coating of ash spewed by the "Throat of Fire" volcano after it erupted on Friday.

Read More...
Better Earth

Lorry-sized boulders spew from Ecuador volcano as 300 people flee for their lives


DailyMail.Co.Uk
Sun, 01 May 2011 11:48 UTC
Ecuador's Tungurahua volcano hurled lorry-sized pyroclastic boulders more than a mile in a powerful eruption that prompted at least 300 people to flee their homes, authorities said.

Schools were closed for a third straight day as ash showered down on a dozen towns in the sparsely populated area surrounding the 16,480-foot volcano.

Thundering explosions could be heard miles from Tungurahua, which is on the Andes cordillera 84 miles southeast of Ecuador's capital, Quito.

Image
© Associated PressFireball: The Tungurahua Volcano spews ash and stones during an eruption which forced 300 people to flee from their homes
Read More...
Bizarro Earth

Volcano In Ecuador Erupts Friday

George Harrison
Dig Triad
Fri, 29 Apr 2011 12:52 UTC



Banos, Ecuador -- Tungurahua Volcano spews ash as high as 10km (33,000-feet) into the air, triggering residents to evacuate and officials to divert flights. Known as "Throat of Fire," Tungurahua is one of eight active volcanos in Ecuador.

Ecuador's "Throat of Fire" volcano erupted today spewing ash that forced hundreds of residents to flee, authorities said.

Loud explosions shook the ground and rattled windows near the volcano, known as Tungurahua in the indigenous Quechua language, 81 miles southeast of Quito, officials said.
Read More...
Radar

Two Russian Volcanoes Spew Ash


EarthWeek
Fri, 29 Apr 2011 07:03 UTC
Image
© National Aeronautics and Space AdministrationKamchatka volcanoes: A cluster of snow-capped volcanoes stretching across eastern portions of Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula.
Two of Far East Russia's most active volcanoes threatened aviation and wildlife during eruptions that spewed ash above the Kamchatka Peninsula.

Ash from Shiveluch soared nearly five miles high near some key trans-Pacific aviation routes.

RIA Novosti reports an eruption of Kizimen volcano brought hazardous conditions to areas inhabited by wild animals, including some endangered species.

The news agency said reindeer were leaving their normal habitat because their usual winter food supply of moss was buried beneath a thick crust of ash-covered snow.

Experts from the Krontosky Nature Reserve told reporters that reindeer numbers may be reduced to less than 1,000 as a result of the eruption.
Read More...
Bizarro Earth

Chile: Dark ash plume at Planchón-Peteroa

Erik Klemetti
Big Think
Tue, 26 Apr 2011 12:54 UTC
Planchón-Peteroa volcano
A webcam capture from Planchón-Peteroa in Chile, as seen at 4:29 PM (local time) on April 26, 2011.
Eruptions reader Gitta noted a fairly impressive ash plume at Chile's Planchón-Peteroa - at least seen on the webcam. The plume isn't especially tall (see below), at least not from the vantage point of the webcam, but it is rather dark and grey in complexion, suggesting a lot of fractured rock or new magma in the plume itself.

Planchón-Peteroa has been producing intermittent plumes for the past year or so, some as high as 4.6 km / 15,000 feet, but nothing in the way of a large eruption, which the volcano is definitely capable (see the VEI 4 eruption of 1762).

The activity has been fairly low as of late, with no SERNAGEOMIN update (spanish) on the volcano since last October. This current plume is likely just more of the same from Planchón-Peteroa, but at least today, the viewing is very nice to see the activity at the remote Chilean volcano.
Read More...
Bizarro Earth

Ecuador: Residents evacuate as volcano spews ashes


CNN
Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:02 UTC
Tungurahua volcano
© AFP/Getty ImagesAn explosion of Tungurahua volcano can be seen from Guadalupe observatory in Tungurahua province, Ecuador, Tuesday
Authorities in Ecuador closed schools and evacuated residents in areas near a volcano Tuesday after ashes spewing from its crater fell on homes and farms, state media reported.

Ashes from Tungurahua -- which means "throat of fire" in the native Quechua language -- rose more than 7 kilometers (4 miles) into the air Tuesday, the government news agency said.

Authorities issued an alert as monitors detected six eruptions, ranging from moderate to large, and a significant ash cloud Tuesday, state media said.
Read More...
Bizarro Earth

Taal volcano heats up, gets ready to rumble

Maricar Cinco and Marrah Erika Lesaba
Inquirer.net
Tue, 26 Apr 2011 23:15 UTC
taal,volcano
© Jason Gutierrez / AFP - Getty Images file
San Pedro, Laguna - The water temperature in the main crater of Taal volcano increased over the weekend, a sign that the volcano may be about to erupt.

Volcanologists raised alert level 2 over Taal early this month.

A bulletin released by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said the temperature of crater waters rose from 30.5 degrees Celsius to 31.5 degrees Celsius over the weekend.
Read More...