Volcanoes
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Bizarro Earth

Japan raises eruption alert for volcano near nuclear plant

Kevin Buckland, Takako Taniguchi
Live Mint
Sat, 15 Aug 2015 09:50 UTC
Sakurajima Volcano
© Agence France-PresseJapan’s weather agency on 15 August raised their alert to its second-highest level after picking up increasing seismic activity around the volcano Sakurajima.
Tokyo: Japan raised an eruption warning for a volcano on the southern island of Kyushu to the second-highest level, days after restarting a nuclear reactor 50 kilometers (31 miles) away.

The Japan Meteorological Agency increased the alert level for the volcano Sakurajima to 4 from 3, advising people within 3 kilometers of the crater to prepare to evacuate. It detected multiple earthquakes in the area on Saturday, the agency said on its website.

Kyushu Electric Power Co. began bringing online the No. 1 reactor at its Sendai power station on 11 August, the first nuclear facility to restart in Japan under new safety rules implemented following the 2011 Fukushima disaster.
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Attention

Cotopaxi volcano in Ecuador spews ash column 5 kilometers high


The Tico Times
Fri, 14 Aug 2015 17:43 UTC
Cotopaxi volcano
© Juan Cevallos/AFPAshes rise above Cotopaxi volcano in the Andes mountains about 50 kilometers south of Quito, Ecuador on August 14, 2015. The Cotopaxi reaches 5,897 meters and is one of the highest volcanos.
A volcano in Ecuador spewed a column of ash five kilometers (3 miles) high on Friday, prompting officials to raise the alert level.

The ash was preceded overnight by two small explosions from the crater, the Geophysics Institute said on Twitter.

The Cotopaxi volcano stands 5,897 meters (19,500 feet) high and is located 45 kilometers (30 miles) south of the capital Quito.

The Geophysics Institute said Cotopaxi is one of the most dangerous volcanos in the world because of the large amount of snow at its peak and because nearby areas are densely populated.
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Fire

Volcano erupts on island near Madagascar where possible MH370 debris found (VIDEO, PHOTOS)


RT
Fri, 31 Jul 2015 18:15 UTC

A volcano erupted on Friday on a remote island in the Indian Ocean, not far from where wreckage suspected to be part of the plane from missing Malaysian flight MH370 was found, reportedly hampering work of investigators examining the debris.

Mesmerizing video and breathtaking photos taken from a bird's eye view have captured the eruption of the Piton de la Fournaise volcano in the southeastern part of Reunion Island.


Comment: Has there been an increase in volcanic activity recently? Actually, the number of volcanoes erupting right now is greater than the 20th century's YEARLY average!

See also: Russian scientist: Slowdown in Earth's rotation means we're on the verge of major climatic upheaval

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Fire

Volcanic ash from Nevado del Ruiz forces two airport closures in Colombia


news.yahoo.com
Sun, 26 Jul 2015 19:41 UTC
Image
© AFP Photo/Santiago OsorioThe Nevado del Ruiz volcano, pictured on January 3, 2015, erupted in an ash cloud on Sunday, prompting authorities to temporarily close two airports in the area
Colombia's Nevado del Ruiz volcano erupted in an ash cloud on Sunday, prompting authorities to temporarily close two airports in the area.

The civil aeronautics agency said it closed airports at Manizales and Pereira as a precaution after the 8:30 am (1330 GMT) eruption.

This resulted in the cancellation of at least 16 flights on Sunday.

A major eruption of the Nevado del Ruiz in 1985 melted the volcano's snowcap, unleashing mudslides that wiped out the town of Armero, killing an estimated 23,000 people.

The volcano, which has been active for an estimated 150,000 years, is 220 kilometers (137 miles) west of Bogota.

Source: AFP
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Radar

"Kick 'Em Jenny" undersea volcano rumbles off Grenada

Linda Straker, David McFadden
ABC News
Thu, 23 Jul 2015 07:14 UTC
Kick 'em Jenny
© www.drgeorgepc.comThe underwater seat floor typography north of Grenada.
An active underwater volcano off Grenada's northern coast called Kick 'em Jenny was rumbling Thursday and regional disaster authorities were put on alert, though they said it posed no threat of triggering a destructive tsunami.

Since its discovery in the 1930s, Kick 'em Jenny has erupted beneath the surface of the Caribbean Sea at least 12 times, most recently in 2001. The volcano, which rises 1,300 meters (4,265 feet) above the seafloor on a steep slope of the Lesser Antilles ridge, hasn't caused any known deaths or injuries.

The Seismic Research Center at the University of the West Indies said seismic activity had increased in the volcano, which sits 8 kilometers (5 miles) north of Grenada. Recreational divers have reported seeing some "degassing" on the seafloor off Grenada's west coast as gas-rich magma bubbles.

Center researchers put the alert level at "orange," which means an eruption could take place within 24 hours. An eruption would stir up high waves and heat surrounding waters to boiling temperatures. Scientists say the volcano can also shoot hot rocks up through the water column.

Comment: There was also a strong 6.5 magnitude earthquake in nearby Barbados on July 17th:



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Fire

5 volcanoes in Indonesia erupt simultaneously - Ash clouds force airport closures


Yahoo! News
Wed, 22 Jul 2015 22:48 UTC
Image
Raung exploded to life earlier this month
Eruptions of ash at five volcanoes shrouded the skies over parts of the Indonesian archipelago Wednesday, forcing three airports to close.

Mount Raung on Java island blasted ash and debris up to 2,000 meters (6,560 feet) into the air after rumbling for several weeks, government volcanologist Surono said.

Ash erupted also from Gamalama and Dukono mountains on the Moluccas islands chain, Sinabung volcano on Sumatra island and Mount Karangetang on Siau island, darkening the skies, Surono said.

A total of more than 13,000 people have been evacuated due to the volcanic eruptions since last month, mostly from around the slopes of Sinabung in Tanah Karo District, added Surono, who uses a single name.

"Our evaluation showed there is no extraordinary natural phenomenon that triggered simultaneous eruptions of the five volcanoes," Surono said, adding that all the eruptions are natural and normal occurrences in a nation with about 130 active volcanoes.


Comment: Nothing to see here folks! It's just increasing climate chaos on the way towards sudden glacial rebound! Move along!

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Arrow Up

Drone captures rare underwater volcano eruption off coast of Taiwan


Hindustantimes.com
Mon, 20 Jul 2015 17:07 UTC
Image
Astounding footage shows the moment a rare underwater volcano erupts off the coast of Taiwan. As the drone flies above the underwater Kueishantao volcano, off the coast of Taiwan's Gueishan Island, the amazing recording captures the moment the mighty volcano erupts deep in the ocean.
The footage was captured by marine scientist Mario Lebrato with Spanish film-maker Daniel Meana, 31, as they were working offshore on a research project with Taiwan Ocean University. Mario commented on the footage: "In the video you can see more than 30 vents, which expel sulphur and carbon dioxide. The seawater comes out of the vents at around 100C, but then gets cooled down by the surrounding water."

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Fire

Best of the Web: Signs of Change: Extreme weather and environmental upheaval in June and July 2015 (VIDEO)

Hawkkey Davis
YouTube
Sun, 19 Jul 2015 16:20 UTC
Image
© HawkkeyDavisChannel/YouTubeA first? Wildfire torches moving vehicles on highway near Los Angeles, California
Video compilation of extreme weather events (and general environmental chaos) from the past month or so.

Record high temperatures in Germany were immediately followed by unusually strong storms and hail. Record rainfall in China was followed by a record heatwave there. In the US, there's been a record heatwave in the West, and record rainfall in the South. There's been record cold in Australia, and record heat in Pakistan. Volcanoes erupted in Indonesia, Japan and Mexico, while there was a strong earthquake in China and an earthquake swarm in Iceland... And in between all that; powerful storms and record rainfall.

Things be intensifying!

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Bizarro Earth

Huge and ancient underwater volcanoes discovered off coast of Sydney, Australia

Oliver Milman
The Guardian
Mon, 13 Jul 2015 04:22 UTC



Scientists searching for lobster larvae on Investigator research vessel instead find cluster of four volcanoes thought to be about 50m years old

Four enormous underwater volcanoes, thought to be about 50m years old, have been discovered off the coast of Sydney by a team of scientists who were looking for lobster larvae.

The volcano cluster was spotted through sonar mapping of the sea floor by Investigator, Australia's new ocean-going research vessel, about 250km off the coast.

The four volcanoes are calderas, large bowl-shaped craters caused when a volcano erupts and the land around it collapses. The largest is 1.5km across the rim and rises 700m from the sea floor. The 20km-long volcano cluster is nearly 5km underwater.

Professor Iain Suthers, a marine biologist at the University of NSW, said the volcano discovery was made when the team was searching for nursery grounds for larval lobsters.

Comment: Other underwater volcanoes have been discovered in recent years from off the coast of New Zealand to Antarctica. In April this year, scientists were stunned by the apparent eruption of a submarine volcano, 'Axial Seamount' off the Northwest US coast (at a similar time to the devastating Nepalese earthquake and the massive eruption of the Calbuco volcano in Chile), which could explain the "unprecedented warming occurring over the last 13 years" of water in this area.

As the number of volcanoes erupting right now is greater than the 20th century's YEARLY average, a comparable escalation in activity of their underwater counterparts seems logical.

It is estimated there are up to one million submarine volcanoes on our planet. Effects from this volcanic activity, combined with increased methane outgassing, radiation from the Fukushima disaster are probably also causing the ongoing devastation of marine life, mass fish die offs and strange migratory behaviour we are currently witnessing.

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Question

Sharks discovered inside active underwater volcano in Solomon Islands

Tanya Lewis
Business Insider
Fri, 10 Jul 2015 15:50 UTC
sharks kavachi volcano
Brennan Phillips and some colleagues were recently on an expedition to Kavachi volcano, an active underwater volcano near the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific. But they weren't prepared for what they saw deep inside the volcanic crater:

Sharks!

Hammerheads and silky sharks, to be specific, contentedly swimming around despite the sizzling water temperatures and biting acidity.

Volcanic vents such as these can release fluids above 800 degrees Fahrenheit and have a similar acidity to vinegar, according to the Marine Education Society of Australasia.
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