http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/earth_climate/volcanoes/ Volcano News and Research. Latest scientific research on how volcanoes work, predicting volcanic eruptions, climate change due to volcanic eruption and more. en-us Tue, 13 May 2008 01:05:01 EDT Tue, 13 May 2008 01:05:01 EDT 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/earth_climate/volcanoes/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508092004.htm Chile's Chaiten Volcano is shown spewing ash and smoke into the air for hundreds of kilometers over Argentina's Patagonia Plateau in a new Envisat image acquired on May 5, 2008. Thu, 08 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508092004.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507105654.htm The Chaiten volcano now erupting in southern Chile is one of 200 to 300 volcanoes in the "Andean Arc" region of Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Columbia considered active by volcanologists, some of which lie in much more densely populated areas, said a geologist who has studied Chaiten. Wed, 07 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507105654.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080423135236.htm The 1600 eruption of Huaynaputina in Peru had a global impact on human society, according to geologists. The eruption is known to have put a large amount of sulfur into the atmosphere, and tree ring studies show that 1601 was a cold year, but no one had looked at the agricultural and social impacts. Fri, 25 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080423135236.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080327171053.htm Explosive eruptions and noxious gas emissions at Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii this week have prompted scientists to work around the clock to understand what will happen next. Scientists are monitoring gas emissions and seismic activity at Kilauea, which on March 19 experienced its first explosive eruption since 1924. The volcano is also emitting sulfur dioxide at toxic levels. Sat, 29 Mar 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080327171053.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080321142057.htm Ten Short-tailed Albatross chicks have been moved by helicopter, from their current stronghold on Torishima Island to the site of a former colony 350 km to the South-east. The potential for future volcanic events on Torishima is among the most serious threats to this vulnerable species. Currently, 80-85% of the world population breeds on a highly erodible slope on the outwash plain from the caldera of an active volcano. Tue, 25 Mar 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080321142057.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080219203516.htm Volcanoes are notoriously hard to study. All the action takes place deep inside, at enormous temperatures. So geophysicists make models, using what they know to develop theories about what they don’t know. Geophysicists have just produced a new seismic model to help figure out what's going on deep inside Mount St. Helens, North America's most active volcano. Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080219203516.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080120160720.htm The first evidence of a volcanic eruption from beneath Antarctica's most rapidly changing ice sheet has been discovered. The volcano on the West Antarctic Ice Sheet erupted 2,000 years ago and remains active. Using airborne ice-sounding radar, scientists discovered a layer of ash produced by a 'subglacial' volcano. It extends across an area larger than Wales. Tue, 22 Jan 2008 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080120160720.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071108132840.htm Geologists report new measurements of rock samples from Kick'em Jenny, a submarine volcano in the Caribbean, that link the rate at which magma is produced beneath subduction zone volcanoes to the rate at which tectonic plates converge in this plate tectonic setting. Tue, 13 Nov 2007 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071108132840.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071108141612.htm The Yellowstone 'supervolcano' rose at a record rate since mid-2004, likely because a Los Angeles-sized, pancake-shaped blob of molten rock was injected 6 miles beneath the slumbering giant, scientists report in Science. Fri, 09 Nov 2007 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071108141612.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071010111923.htm A new, rapid and cheap way of estimating the potential risk posed to human health by volcanic ash has been devised. Scientists have developed a sieving technique which analyses the grain size of volcanic ash to determine its possible threat to many thousands of humans affected by the estimated 70 volcanic eruptions which happen worldwide each year. Fri, 12 Oct 2007 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071010111923.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071006081254.htm The high elevation of the Andes Cordillera make surveillance of these volcanic structures complicated and restricting. Researchers recently investigated a volcanic complex located on the Argentina-Chile border using images captured by a European Space Agency satellite. The data acquired showed that over the study area two types of deformation appear to affect the terrestrial crust. Tue, 09 Oct 2007 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071006081254.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070821112228.htm A geologist is doing his part to make sure that the small Latin American country of Ecuador follows the Boy Scout motto: Be prepared. The scientists are developing an emergency plan in case of an eruption, which could happen again soon because magma temperatures are rising. Sat, 25 Aug 2007 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070821112228.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070731125741.htm A leading expert has repeated his assertion that an Indonesian mud volcano was almost certainly man-made despite a new study claiming the eruption might have been triggered by an earthquake. Professor Richard Davies of Durham University's Center for Research into Earth Energy Systems, said the volcano, known locally as Lusi, was most likely caused by the drilling of a nearby exploratory borehole looking for gas. Sun, 05 Aug 2007 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070731125741.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070713131217.htm Volcanologist Sarah Fagents from the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology at the University of Hawaii at Manoa had an amazing opportunity to study volcanic hazards first hand, when a volcanic mudflow broke through the banks of a volcanic lake at Mount Ruapehu in New Zealand. Mon, 16 Jul 2007 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070713131217.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070711134542.htm Indonesia's Mount Gamkonora volcano is spewing hot ash and smoke into the air, as seen in the attached image taken by the MERIS instrument aboard ESA's satellite Envisat, causing more than 8000 people to be evacuated amid fears of an imminent eruption, according to officials. Thu, 12 Jul 2007 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070711134542.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070705110230.htm Klyuchevskoy, a stratovolcano located in the north central region of the Kamchatka Peninsula, is blasting ash up to 32,000 feet in the air, and has diverted air traffic headed toward the Far East. This is the largest eruption to occur in the North Pacific in a decade. Thu, 05 Jul 2007 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070705110230.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070524094120.htm With a new coat of paint, thorough ship inspection, and sailing under the flag of the Helmholtz Association, Polarstern begins to make its way toward the north on May 29. The flagship of the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, is initially heading to Northern Norway and then on to Spitsbergen during its 22nd Arctic expedition. Mon, 28 May 2007 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070524094120.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070517142549.htm Using a state-of-the-art satellite imagery technique, researchers can more precisely predict volcanic activity, bringing them closer to understanding where eruptions may occur. A new study in Science examines Mauna Loa's volcanic activity. With this new technique, researchers can more precisely forecast locations of volcanic activity -- providing critical information to improve warning systems and hazard assessment of populated areas surrounding one of the world's most naturally dangerous ecosystems, volcanoes. Thu, 24 May 2007 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070517142549.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070510163222.htm This week, researchers will begin direct monitoring of the rumblings of a submarine volcano in the southeastern Caribbean Sea. Recently, scientists installed a new underwater earthquake monitoring system on top of Kick'em Jenny, a volcano just off of the north coast of the island nation of Grenada. Fri, 11 May 2007 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070510163222.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070410103017.htm Scientists using NASA satellite data have found strong evidence that a major earthquake can lead to a nearly immediate increase in regional volcanic activity. Thu, 12 Apr 2007 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070410103017.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/03/070329075134.htm Although it's been more than a year since Mount Augustine had its memorable eruption, work continues for University of Alaska Fairbanks researchers. Researchers recorded a "spectacular lightning sequence" during a volcanic eruption. Thu, 29 Mar 2007 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/03/070329075134.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/03/070321181929.htm After years of results that repeatedly dogged him, University of Oregon geologist Douglas R. Toomey decided to follow the trail of data surfacing from the Pacific Ocean. In doing so, he and his collaborators may have altered long-held assumptions involving plate tectonics on the ocean floor. Thu, 22 Mar 2007 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/03/070321181929.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/03/070305144749.htm A study being published this week suggests that gas and vapor movement to the top of the magma body may have caused fairly rapid increases in pressure and could have been the triggering mechanism that caused Mount St. Helens to erupt in both 1980 and 2004. Tue, 06 Mar 2007 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/03/070305144749.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/03/070301081952.htm A 17-year University of Utah study of ground movements shows that the power of the huge volcanic hotspot beneath Yellowstone National Park is much greater than previously thought when the giant volcano is slumbering. Findings show gradual ground movements overpower quake movements at Yellowstone, and the hotspot makes the Teton fault behave unexpectedly. Thu, 01 Mar 2007 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/03/070301081952.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/02/070206100526.htm Since their discovery, carbon nanotubes and carbon nanofibers have been used in a wide variety of applications. However, because their production on an industrial scale remains expensive, their commercial use in such areas as catalysis has remained unthinkable. This could now be changing: Dang Sheng Su and his co-workers have used igneous rock from Mount Etna to produce carbon nanotubes and fibers. Tue, 06 Feb 2007 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/02/070206100526.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/01/070123181953.htm The first scientific report into the causes and impact of Lusi, the Indonesian mud volcano, reveals that the 2006 eruption will continue to erupt and spew out between 7,000 and 150,000 cubic metres of mud a day for months, if not years to come, leaving at least 10 km2 around the volcano vent uninhabitable for years and over 11,000 people permanently displaced. Wed, 24 Jan 2007 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/01/070123181953.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/11/061129151446.htm Rutgers University geological sciences professor Claude Herzberg offers new evidence that parts of the Earth's crust that long ago dove hundreds or thousands of kilometers into the Earth's interior have resurfaced in the hot lava flow of Hawaiian volcanoes. Writing in Nature, Herzberg claims to have found telltale chemical evidence at Mauna Kea that pieces of this submerged crust have been forced up through plumes and now make up most of this volcano's lava flow. Thu, 30 Nov 2006 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/11/061129151446.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/11/061128083754.htm Geological evidence indicates that the eastern flanks of Mt. Etna volcano, located on Italy's island of Sicily, suffered at least one large collapse nearly 8,000 years ago. Tue, 28 Nov 2006 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/11/061128083754.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/11/061121232204.htm An environmental drama played out on the world stage in the late 18th century when a volcano killed 9,000 Icelanders and brought a famine to Egypt that reduced the population of the Nile valley by a sixth. A study by three scientists demonstrates a connection between these two widely separated events, and is the first to conclusively establish the linkage between high-latitude eruptions and the water supply in North Africa. Wed, 22 Nov 2006 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/11/061121232204.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/11/061108100414.htm Volcanic eruptions destroy ozone and create "mini-ozone holes," according to two new studies by researchers at the Universities of Cambridge and Oxford. Wed, 08 Nov 2006 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/11/061108100414.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/10/061025184753.htm An earthquake swarm -- a steady drumbeat of moderate, related seismic events -- over hours or days, often can be observed near a volcano such as Mount St. Helens in Washington state or in a geothermal region such as Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. New research led by a University of Washington seismologist shows, however, that such swarms can occur anywhere that is seismically active, not just near volcanoes or geothermal regions. Sat, 28 Oct 2006 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/10/061025184753.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/10/061025084555.htm Geologists at Rutgers University have created three hands-on demonstrations that show how heat and pressure underground move rocks and earth to build up volcanic mountains, and in some cases, cause them to literally blow their tops. These activities, which depict the actual forces that caused Washington's Mt. St. Helens to blow or Hawaii's Kilauea to spew red-hot rivers of lava, captivate kids while giving them a foundation for studying earth science in high school. Wed, 25 Oct 2006 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/10/061025084555.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/10/061019100814.htm Not lava, but muds and methane are emitted from the Arctic deep-water mud volcano Haakon Mosby. When it reaches the atmosphere, methane is an aggressive greenhouse gas, 25-times more potent than carbon dioxide. Fortunately, some specialised microorganisms feed on methane and thereby reduce emissions of this greenhouse gas. For the first time, a German-French research team showed which methane consuming microorganisms thrive in the ice-cold Arctic deep-sea. Fri, 20 Oct 2006 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/10/061019100814.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/09/060920192823.htm The volcanic island of La Palma in the Canaries is much more stable than is generally assumed, Dutch scientists working at the TU Delft have found. The southwestern flank of the island isn't likely to fall into the sea -- potentially causing a tsunami -- for at least another 10,000 years, professor Jan Nieuwenhuis states in the September edition of the university's science magazine Delft Integraal. Thu, 21 Sep 2006 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/09/060920192823.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/09/060911105627.htm The reason may be counter-intuitive, but the more magma crystallizes, the hotter it gets and the more likely a volcano will erupt, according to a team of scientists that includes a University of Oregon geologist. The knowledge likely will aid monitoring of conditions at Mount St. Helens and other volcanic hot spots around the world. Wed, 20 Sep 2006 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/09/060911105627.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/08/060826171514.htm Satellite images acquired by ESA's Envisat satellite have revealed the volcanic region of the Phlegrean Fields, located in southern Italy near the city of Naples, has entered a new uplift phase. Sun, 27 Aug 2006 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/08/060826171514.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/08/060810084743.htm Predicting eruptions will become easier now scientists are using technology to translate the patterns in a volcano's behaviour into sound waves. Thu, 10 Aug 2006 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/08/060810084743.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/08/060801182958.htm Scientists studying hydrothermal vents, those underwater geysers that are home to bizarre geological structures and unique marine species, have discovered something all too familiar: pollution. Wed, 02 Aug 2006 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/08/060801182958.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/07/060706100045.htm A team of American geoscientists is urging colleagues around the world to search for evidence of tiny earthquakes in seismically active areas, such as the Pacific Northwest, that are periodically rocked by powerful temblors of magnitude 8 and higher. The scientists' call for action, published in the July 6 edition of Nature, is based on their surprising discovery in Hawaii that slow-moving "silent earthquakes"--so-called because they produce no seismic waves--can, in fact, trigger swarms of tiny conventional temblors. Thu, 06 Jul 2006 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/07/060706100045.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/05/060525193023.htm An international team of scientists has presented its findings from the first observations of the eruption of a submarine volcano that in 2004 and 2005 spewed out plumes of sulfur-rich fluid and pulses of volcanic ash 550 meters below the ocean's surface near the Mariana Islands northwest of Guam. Thu, 25 May 2006 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/05/060525193023.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/04/060412204427.htm Tremors within the Earth are usually -- but not always -- related to the activity of a volcano. Now, such vibrations have been recorded nowhere near a volcano, but at a geologic observatory at the San Andreas Fault. Scientists believe the fault tremors may be related to activity at a subduction zone -- a place where one of Earth's constantly moving tectonic plates slips beneath another. Thu, 13 Apr 2006 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/04/060412204427.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/03/060328183109.htm North America isn't the only continent that's experienced super-colossal volcanic eruptions in the recent geologic past. The massive explosion of the almost unknown Vilama Caldera in Argentina appears to have matched Yellowstone's last continent-blanketing blast. It may, in fact, be just one of several unappreciated supervolcanoes hidden in a veritable mega-volcano nursery called the Eduardo Avaroa Caldera Complex, located in the inhospitable Puna-Altiplano region near the tri-section of Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile. Tue, 28 Mar 2006 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/03/060328183109.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/02/060216231550.htm As Alaska's Augustine Volcano erupts and sends a plume of ash more than 40,000 feet into the air, instruments on the ground are recording rumblings at the volcano's surface. The data collected will provide new insights into the inner workings of volcanoes along the Pacific rim. Sun, 19 Feb 2006 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/02/060216231550.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/02/060209183915.htm Ocean temperatures may have risen even higher during the last century if it weren't for volcanoes that spewed ashes and aerosols into the upper atmosphere. Further, these eruptions offset a large percentage of sea level rise caused by humans. Thu, 09 Feb 2006 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/02/060209183915.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/11/051123235357.htm A rare volcanic eruption is expanding the size of an island in British Overseas Territory. Spectacular new satellite images show that Montagu Island, an erupting volcano in the South Sandwich Islands, South Atlantic has grown by 50 acres, equivalent to 40 football pitches in the last month. Researchers from the British Antarctic Survey and the Hawaii Institute of Geophysics and Planetology were alerted to satellite data showing a fast flowing lava flow that is pouring into the sea like a huge waterfall. Thu, 24 Nov 2005 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/11/051123235357.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/10/051015091221.htm Scientists aboard the Scripps research vessel Roger Revelle this week solved a 45-year-old geological mystery. In 1960, Scripps oceanographer Dale Krause reported the discovery of extraordinary deep-sea volcanic rocks in waters off Mexico, near Guadalupe Island, approximately 200 miles south of San Diego. When brought to the surface, the rocks spontaneously exploded "with a sharp snapping sound," according to Krause. Sat, 15 Oct 2005 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/10/051015091221.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/08/050819093452.htm If the volcanic eruption is strong enough it will inject material into the stratosphere, more than 10 miles above the Earth's surface. Here, tiny particles called aerosols form when the volcano's sulfur dioxide combines with water vapor. Despite their size, these aerosols work to alter interactions between the atmosphere and sun, affecting climate patterns. Now, new research funded by NASA and the National Science Foundation, focusing on the eruption of Mount Katmai, Alaska, in June 1912, shows that location is also important, as major volcanic eruptions far north of the equator affect the world's climate much differently than volcanoes in the tropics. Wed, 24 Aug 2005 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/08/050819093452.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/08/050811104441.htm While volcanologists can see the dome of the Soufriere Hills Volcano on the island of Montserrat grow and collapse, it takes instrumentation to delve beneath the surface. Now, Penn State geologists, using tiltmeter measurements, have investigated a shallow area under the dome and what they found was not quite what they expected. Fri, 12 Aug 2005 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/08/050811104441.htm