Sunday, October 29, 2006
Mount Etna is active again!
Catania, October 26 - Experts swooped on Mount Etna on Thursday after the volcano sprang back into life .The volcanologists examined a fresh lava flow on the south side of the volcano, coming out of a fissure that opened up at the weekend at a height of 2,000 metres .Lava is now flowing from three craters on the mountain accompanied by blasts, black smoke and ash .
The new craters, however, are far from any inhabited areas, experts stressed .Etna is Europe's most active volcano .Earlier this month the European Space Agency presented a 3D simulation of the volcano's seismic movements ."Seen from above, Etna looks like a huge creature breathing fitfully," ESA said, reporting a 15cm-high ripple "as the mountain's lungs fill up and convulsively disgorge lava and gas".
In October 2002, it was rocked by a series of tremors and minor eruptions which damaged buildings and left 1,000 people temporarily homeless .More serious volcanic activity occurred in the summer of 2001 .The eruptions made international headlines as parts of an important ski resort, the Rifugio Sapienza, were engulfed and the town of Nicolosi was threatened with a similar fate .
Viewers around the world were also held spellbound by the beauty of the spectacle, which experts said was one of the most unusual and complex eruptions in three centuries .But the volcano's last major eruption was in 1992, when the Italian military had to use controlled explosions to divert lava away from the town of Zafferana on the mountain's lower slopes .
The new craters, however, are far from any inhabited areas, experts stressed .Etna is Europe's most active volcano .Earlier this month the European Space Agency presented a 3D simulation of the volcano's seismic movements ."Seen from above, Etna looks like a huge creature breathing fitfully," ESA said, reporting a 15cm-high ripple "as the mountain's lungs fill up and convulsively disgorge lava and gas".
In October 2002, it was rocked by a series of tremors and minor eruptions which damaged buildings and left 1,000 people temporarily homeless .More serious volcanic activity occurred in the summer of 2001 .The eruptions made international headlines as parts of an important ski resort, the Rifugio Sapienza, were engulfed and the town of Nicolosi was threatened with a similar fate .
Viewers around the world were also held spellbound by the beauty of the spectacle, which experts said was one of the most unusual and complex eruptions in three centuries .But the volcano's last major eruption was in 1992, when the Italian military had to use controlled explosions to divert lava away from the town of Zafferana on the mountain's lower slopes .
Mount Vesuvius is being tested!
Rome - Italy staged a massive exercise Sunday to test its reaction to possible eruptions from Mount Vesuvius, the volcano that buried Pompei and which is among the world's most dangerous.
Police, firefighters, doctors and civil servants were on hand to test the emergency plan in a so-called "red zone" around the volcano, where 600 000 people are threatened by a potential eruption.
European experts and observers were also among the 2 500 people mobilised for the progressive four-day operation which began on Thursday and is the largest simulation of its kind, officials said.
Heavy rains on Sunday - muddying roads and delaying the excercise - did not help matters. But Italian civilian protection head Guido Bertolaso rejoiced in the adverse conditions.
"The more difficult the conditions, the better we can test the system," Bertolaso told the Italian news agency Ansa.
Vesuvius last erupted in 1944, vomiting rivers of lava over 11 consecutive days.
The explosion killed 26 people and left another 12 000 homeless.
Hundreds of people were saved due to a warning given a week earlier.
Police, firefighters, doctors and civil servants were on hand to test the emergency plan in a so-called "red zone" around the volcano, where 600 000 people are threatened by a potential eruption.
European experts and observers were also among the 2 500 people mobilised for the progressive four-day operation which began on Thursday and is the largest simulation of its kind, officials said.
Heavy rains on Sunday - muddying roads and delaying the excercise - did not help matters. But Italian civilian protection head Guido Bertolaso rejoiced in the adverse conditions.
"The more difficult the conditions, the better we can test the system," Bertolaso told the Italian news agency Ansa.
Vesuvius last erupted in 1944, vomiting rivers of lava over 11 consecutive days.
The explosion killed 26 people and left another 12 000 homeless.
Hundreds of people were saved due to a warning given a week earlier.
Inactive volcano has a history of its own!
Why would any sane person get up during their Hawaiian honeymoon and start the day at 2:45 a.m.?
It's worth the effort if you are anticipating the sunrise of a lifetime and a horseback riding adventure in Haleakala National Park.
During its 15- to 50-year life span, the silversword plant blooms with purple or pink flowers, then dies. The silversword is found above elevations of 6,500 feet. Its silver leaves reflect the sun's rays and its large taproot allows it to withstand harsh winds. It can grow as high as 9 feet.Click photo for larger image.
The inactive volcano Haleakala is one of two volcanoes that formed this young Hawaiian island, and its astonishing natural beauty attracts millions of visitors each year, keeping a few companies in business, including The Pony Express. We planned this unforgettable vacation by reading Andrew Doughty's popular travel guide, "Maui Revealed."
But it was M.M. -- that's Mister Mensch -- who booked this ride and led me on it. ("Mensch" is a Yiddish word that means a decent, responsible person, a description that fits my husband, Mark.)
Mister Mensch roused me gently in our room at the Maui Prince Hotel, a quiet resort with a wide, long beach, helpful staff and sumptuous breakfasts.
This was not a day to linger over fresh pineapple, waffles and a fourth cup of coffee. We dressed for cold weather, ate a blueberry breakfast bar, checked our backpack one last time for essentials such as water, sunscreen and aspirin, and headed north from the town of Makena. While I dozed in the passenger seat, moaning from caffeine withdrawal like an addict on her first day in rehab, Mark drove across the island and up the 10,023-foot-high mountain.
As Mister Mensch navigated serpentine roads that lack guard rails, a huge glorious moon lit our path.
"That moon looks like the moon in 'Moonstruck,' said Mark, an ardent movie buff who recalls the names of character actors, cinematographers, directors and the details of how chase scenes were filmed.
"La bella luna," I cried in my best Italian accent, recalling that scene from the movie where the grandfather walks his dogs in Manhattan late at night.
That luminous moon was merely the opening act; the sun is the undisputed star at Haleakala, which, in the lyrical Hawaiian language, means "house of the sun."
According to Hawaiian legend, the demigod Maui used a twisted coconut fiber to lasso the sun as it rose over Haleakala. In this way, Maui persuaded the sun to move more slowly across the sky for six months of the year. That way, Maui's mother, Hina, could dry her handmade kapa cloth in just one day.
For those of us who have never given birth to a child, watching the sun rise over Haleakala may be the closest we will ever feel to being present at the mystical moment of creation.
The air was cold enough to warrant a fleece jacket over several layers and a pair of jeans. At the summit, tourists wrapped in blankets huddled together. Just below the summit, in the visitor center parking lot, more tourists jockeyed for the best vantage point for taking pictures.
If you go:Haleakala Crater
We booked our horseback ride by calling Pony Express Tours at 1-808-667-2200. Our ride cost $169 per person plus tax. Remember that Hawaii is six hours behind Pittsburgh clocks.You can also book this trip on line at www.ponyexpresstours.com.That Web site also outlines other trips available through the company.
-- Marylynne PitzAs the sun glided slowly over the horizon, cheers and gasps arose from the crowd. The sky turned from a sea of black and orange to a pumpkin gold as the morning star rose overhead, pierced the blanket of clouds and warmed our dazzled faces. It was 5:56 a.m.
In the morning light, we climbed to the summit to admire the West Maui mountains. Then, we descended the path and returned to the visitors center, where a volunteer told us that that morning's light show was a 7.5 out of 10 because the air and sky were so clear.
Many visitors to Maui ride a bike down Haleakala, and several people suggested we do the same. But we opted for a slower pace on horseback that allowed us to savor sights we are not likely to see again. Besides, I told my husband, how could we miss out on our Roy Rogers and Dale Evans moment?
By 9 a.m., our guide, Byron Gardner, arrived with 10 horses. Tall, lean and friendly, he looked like a Frederic Remington bronze come to life. He grew up on a ranch in western Colorado where his family raised Morgan horses. A trained wildlife biologist who had studied pumas, Byron moved to Maui after his wife said she could not stand another Colorado winter.
He asked each of us how much experience we had in riding a horse, then devoted a good half-hour to teaching our group the basics to ensure our safety. After learning that my husband is a lawyer, Byron put him on a horse named Buck.
"It's a noun, not a verb," Byron said with a reassuring smile.
My mount, a beautiful chestnut-colored animal, was named Kai, which means "ocean" in Hawaiian. We waited as Byron instructed the rest of the riders.
The island of Manhattan would fit in Haleakala Crater, which is technically known among geologists as an erosional depression. The crater is 7.5 miles long, 2.5 miles deep and 3,000 feet deep.
After countless eruptions, the two volcanoes that formed Maui emerged from the water. Eventually, erosion, wind and rain connected the valleys between the two volcanoes, creating this huge crater.
We began our descent on the Sliding Sands Trail, going 2,500 feet to the crater floor. Round-trip, we rode four hours in a Western saddle and covered 7.6 miles.
It seemed as if we were riding through a series of Georgia O'Keeffe paintings. Iron deposits streaked the crater's soil red; manganese left purple striations in the earth. The thin air was clear and the sun shone brightly. Waves of clouds that looked like undulating giant comforters rolled overhead, as thick as the surf we had seen on Waikiki Beach in Honolulu.
Our party rode single file and nose to tail on the trail, which zigzagged into the crater. The horses, which would probably know this trail even in pitch dark, stepped carefully around rocks that dot the steep terrain.
The ever-changing vistas of jagged, black mountains, blue skies and a palette of desert colors such as dusty red, gold, gray and green unfolded at each turn in the trail. Occasionally, Kai cantered to catch up with horses up ahead, and I did my best to keep my balance.
Around noon, we dismounted. Lunch on the crater floor consisted of juice, water, sandwiches and Maui potato chips. We swatted a bevy of swarming bees. After nearly two hours in the saddle, a single white chocolate macadamia nut cookie is a scrumptious dessert.
With its open craters and cinder cones, Haleakala's landscape, Byron told us, looks similar to the surface of Mars.
On our return trip, Byron pointed out the blooming silversword plant, a perennial that lives for up to 50 years, blooms once, then dies. A blooming silversword looks like the desert's hardy version of a Christmas tree. The silver leaves serve as a tree skirt while the blooms make gorgeous ornaments.
Byron also pointed out the volcano Mauna Kea, which was visible in the crystalline air even though it was 80 miles away on the island of Hawaii.
As we drove back down the mountain, I envied the residents of Hawaii even though the cost of living is high. A team of Harvard researchers reported this year that Hawaiians have the highest life expectancy among U.S. citizens because they typically live to the age of 80.
And no wonder. They eat fish, soak up vitamin D from the sun and are surrounded by beauty every day of their lives.
It's worth the effort if you are anticipating the sunrise of a lifetime and a horseback riding adventure in Haleakala National Park.
During its 15- to 50-year life span, the silversword plant blooms with purple or pink flowers, then dies. The silversword is found above elevations of 6,500 feet. Its silver leaves reflect the sun's rays and its large taproot allows it to withstand harsh winds. It can grow as high as 9 feet.Click photo for larger image.
The inactive volcano Haleakala is one of two volcanoes that formed this young Hawaiian island, and its astonishing natural beauty attracts millions of visitors each year, keeping a few companies in business, including The Pony Express. We planned this unforgettable vacation by reading Andrew Doughty's popular travel guide, "Maui Revealed."
But it was M.M. -- that's Mister Mensch -- who booked this ride and led me on it. ("Mensch" is a Yiddish word that means a decent, responsible person, a description that fits my husband, Mark.)
Mister Mensch roused me gently in our room at the Maui Prince Hotel, a quiet resort with a wide, long beach, helpful staff and sumptuous breakfasts.
This was not a day to linger over fresh pineapple, waffles and a fourth cup of coffee. We dressed for cold weather, ate a blueberry breakfast bar, checked our backpack one last time for essentials such as water, sunscreen and aspirin, and headed north from the town of Makena. While I dozed in the passenger seat, moaning from caffeine withdrawal like an addict on her first day in rehab, Mark drove across the island and up the 10,023-foot-high mountain.
As Mister Mensch navigated serpentine roads that lack guard rails, a huge glorious moon lit our path.
"That moon looks like the moon in 'Moonstruck,' said Mark, an ardent movie buff who recalls the names of character actors, cinematographers, directors and the details of how chase scenes were filmed.
"La bella luna," I cried in my best Italian accent, recalling that scene from the movie where the grandfather walks his dogs in Manhattan late at night.
That luminous moon was merely the opening act; the sun is the undisputed star at Haleakala, which, in the lyrical Hawaiian language, means "house of the sun."
According to Hawaiian legend, the demigod Maui used a twisted coconut fiber to lasso the sun as it rose over Haleakala. In this way, Maui persuaded the sun to move more slowly across the sky for six months of the year. That way, Maui's mother, Hina, could dry her handmade kapa cloth in just one day.
For those of us who have never given birth to a child, watching the sun rise over Haleakala may be the closest we will ever feel to being present at the mystical moment of creation.
The air was cold enough to warrant a fleece jacket over several layers and a pair of jeans. At the summit, tourists wrapped in blankets huddled together. Just below the summit, in the visitor center parking lot, more tourists jockeyed for the best vantage point for taking pictures.
If you go:Haleakala Crater
We booked our horseback ride by calling Pony Express Tours at 1-808-667-2200. Our ride cost $169 per person plus tax. Remember that Hawaii is six hours behind Pittsburgh clocks.You can also book this trip on line at www.ponyexpresstours.com.That Web site also outlines other trips available through the company.
-- Marylynne PitzAs the sun glided slowly over the horizon, cheers and gasps arose from the crowd. The sky turned from a sea of black and orange to a pumpkin gold as the morning star rose overhead, pierced the blanket of clouds and warmed our dazzled faces. It was 5:56 a.m.
In the morning light, we climbed to the summit to admire the West Maui mountains. Then, we descended the path and returned to the visitors center, where a volunteer told us that that morning's light show was a 7.5 out of 10 because the air and sky were so clear.
Many visitors to Maui ride a bike down Haleakala, and several people suggested we do the same. But we opted for a slower pace on horseback that allowed us to savor sights we are not likely to see again. Besides, I told my husband, how could we miss out on our Roy Rogers and Dale Evans moment?
By 9 a.m., our guide, Byron Gardner, arrived with 10 horses. Tall, lean and friendly, he looked like a Frederic Remington bronze come to life. He grew up on a ranch in western Colorado where his family raised Morgan horses. A trained wildlife biologist who had studied pumas, Byron moved to Maui after his wife said she could not stand another Colorado winter.
He asked each of us how much experience we had in riding a horse, then devoted a good half-hour to teaching our group the basics to ensure our safety. After learning that my husband is a lawyer, Byron put him on a horse named Buck.
"It's a noun, not a verb," Byron said with a reassuring smile.
My mount, a beautiful chestnut-colored animal, was named Kai, which means "ocean" in Hawaiian. We waited as Byron instructed the rest of the riders.
The island of Manhattan would fit in Haleakala Crater, which is technically known among geologists as an erosional depression. The crater is 7.5 miles long, 2.5 miles deep and 3,000 feet deep.
After countless eruptions, the two volcanoes that formed Maui emerged from the water. Eventually, erosion, wind and rain connected the valleys between the two volcanoes, creating this huge crater.
We began our descent on the Sliding Sands Trail, going 2,500 feet to the crater floor. Round-trip, we rode four hours in a Western saddle and covered 7.6 miles.
It seemed as if we were riding through a series of Georgia O'Keeffe paintings. Iron deposits streaked the crater's soil red; manganese left purple striations in the earth. The thin air was clear and the sun shone brightly. Waves of clouds that looked like undulating giant comforters rolled overhead, as thick as the surf we had seen on Waikiki Beach in Honolulu.
Our party rode single file and nose to tail on the trail, which zigzagged into the crater. The horses, which would probably know this trail even in pitch dark, stepped carefully around rocks that dot the steep terrain.
The ever-changing vistas of jagged, black mountains, blue skies and a palette of desert colors such as dusty red, gold, gray and green unfolded at each turn in the trail. Occasionally, Kai cantered to catch up with horses up ahead, and I did my best to keep my balance.
Around noon, we dismounted. Lunch on the crater floor consisted of juice, water, sandwiches and Maui potato chips. We swatted a bevy of swarming bees. After nearly two hours in the saddle, a single white chocolate macadamia nut cookie is a scrumptious dessert.
With its open craters and cinder cones, Haleakala's landscape, Byron told us, looks similar to the surface of Mars.
On our return trip, Byron pointed out the blooming silversword plant, a perennial that lives for up to 50 years, blooms once, then dies. A blooming silversword looks like the desert's hardy version of a Christmas tree. The silver leaves serve as a tree skirt while the blooms make gorgeous ornaments.
Byron also pointed out the volcano Mauna Kea, which was visible in the crystalline air even though it was 80 miles away on the island of Hawaii.
As we drove back down the mountain, I envied the residents of Hawaii even though the cost of living is high. A team of Harvard researchers reported this year that Hawaiians have the highest life expectancy among U.S. citizens because they typically live to the age of 80.
And no wonder. They eat fish, soak up vitamin D from the sun and are surrounded by beauty every day of their lives.
Mud volcano is making a huge mess!
PORONG, Indonesia Factories that once produced watches and shoes lie under a sea of thick, stinking mud. Villagers stand on hastily constructed dams and gaze at the thousands of homes swallowed by brown sludge.
Four months ago, a torrent of hot mud from deep beneath the surface of Indonesia's seismically charged Java island began surging from a natural gas exploration site following a drilling accident.
The "mud volcano" pours out about 165,000 cubic yards of mud every day -- enough to cover a football field about 75 feet deep.
Often spewing out in geyser-like eruptions, the mud has left about 665 acres swamped or abandoned as unsafe, forcing more than 10,000 people from their homes.
Experts say the mud volcano is one of the largest ever recorded on land. Geologists fear the technology may not exist to stop the eruption, saying mud could flow for years or even centuries -- or stop on its own at any time.
The mud is believed to come from a reservoir 3 1/2 miles below the surface that has been pressurized by shifts in the crust or by the accumulation of hydrocarbon gases.
The calamity has underscored the patchy safety record of mining companies exploiting the natural resources of this Southeast Asian nation made up of thousands of islands.
Police seized the drilling rig involved in the accident and are investigating whether to bring criminal charges against the principal well owner, PT Lapindo Brantas.
Lapindo, which is linked to the wealthy family of Indonesia's welfare minister, is paying for an ever expanding network of earthen dams to contain the mud, but many people fear the resulting slimy ponds will overflow during the approaching rainy season.
"The volume of mud that is coming out of the hole is not just large, it's enormous," Earl Hunt Jr., an engineer from Woodward, Okla., said while supervising dredging operations.
"We are running out of room up here, period," he said. "If they don't pump it to sea or something soon, then there will be more villages lost."
The government recently gave permission to dump the mud into the sea via a local river. But experts question whether that will get rid of the sludge faster than it gushes from the hole, and environmentalists are opposing the plan as a threat to the marine ecosystem.
The mud, which stands as deep as 16 feet in places, has submerged or washed into houses in four villages. At least 20 factories and many acres of rice fields and prawn farms have been destroyed.
The sludge has repeatedly washed over a major road, closing it for weeks at a time, and now it is threatening a rail line in the industrial area just outside Surabaya, Indonesia's second-largest city.
The mud, which is not toxic, first appeared several days after a blowout deep in Lapindo's well shaft May 29.
Police claim the company mishandled the accident by failing to cap the hole properly, allowing the mud to surge to the surface from several cracks close to the well.
Independent analysts also have said the company's activities were a factor in the torrent.
"This is a natural disaster induced by drilling activity," said Andang Bactiar, a consultant for the oil and gas industry who is working with authorities investigating the case. "Somehow, or somewhere, several mistakes occurred that caused the mud to come from the hole."
The company declined to give its version of what happened or the steps it took to stem the mud, citing possible legal liability. But spokeswoman Yuniwati Teryana said drilling activity had not been proven to be linked to the eruption.
The well is 50 percent owned by Lapindo. Another Indonesian firm, PT Medco E&P Brantas, has a 32 percent stake and Santos Ltd. of Australia holds the remaining 18 percent.
Lapindo has made emergency payments to those who have lost homes and promises to compensate their losses.
But in a country where mistrust of government runs high after decades of dictatorship that ended only in 1998, many people fear the company will try to dodge its responsibilities. The involvement of Welfare Minister Aburizal Bakrie's family in Lapindo has only added to worries.
"We are just poor people, our rights will be torn up as usual," one resident, Sukararji, said as he stood on a dam gazing at mud that reaches the second-floor windows of his house. "We are being stepped on like ants."
After two unsuccessful attempts to stop the flow, Lapindo is digging three shafts alongside the hole, hoping to kill the eruption by pumping in concrete.
Experts are skeptical that will work.
"If they manage to stop it, it will be the first time in the world that it has been done," said geologist Arif Munsyawar.
Four months ago, a torrent of hot mud from deep beneath the surface of Indonesia's seismically charged Java island began surging from a natural gas exploration site following a drilling accident.
The "mud volcano" pours out about 165,000 cubic yards of mud every day -- enough to cover a football field about 75 feet deep.
Often spewing out in geyser-like eruptions, the mud has left about 665 acres swamped or abandoned as unsafe, forcing more than 10,000 people from their homes.
Experts say the mud volcano is one of the largest ever recorded on land. Geologists fear the technology may not exist to stop the eruption, saying mud could flow for years or even centuries -- or stop on its own at any time.
The mud is believed to come from a reservoir 3 1/2 miles below the surface that has been pressurized by shifts in the crust or by the accumulation of hydrocarbon gases.
The calamity has underscored the patchy safety record of mining companies exploiting the natural resources of this Southeast Asian nation made up of thousands of islands.
Police seized the drilling rig involved in the accident and are investigating whether to bring criminal charges against the principal well owner, PT Lapindo Brantas.
Lapindo, which is linked to the wealthy family of Indonesia's welfare minister, is paying for an ever expanding network of earthen dams to contain the mud, but many people fear the resulting slimy ponds will overflow during the approaching rainy season.
"The volume of mud that is coming out of the hole is not just large, it's enormous," Earl Hunt Jr., an engineer from Woodward, Okla., said while supervising dredging operations.
"We are running out of room up here, period," he said. "If they don't pump it to sea or something soon, then there will be more villages lost."
The government recently gave permission to dump the mud into the sea via a local river. But experts question whether that will get rid of the sludge faster than it gushes from the hole, and environmentalists are opposing the plan as a threat to the marine ecosystem.
The mud, which stands as deep as 16 feet in places, has submerged or washed into houses in four villages. At least 20 factories and many acres of rice fields and prawn farms have been destroyed.
The sludge has repeatedly washed over a major road, closing it for weeks at a time, and now it is threatening a rail line in the industrial area just outside Surabaya, Indonesia's second-largest city.
The mud, which is not toxic, first appeared several days after a blowout deep in Lapindo's well shaft May 29.
Police claim the company mishandled the accident by failing to cap the hole properly, allowing the mud to surge to the surface from several cracks close to the well.
Independent analysts also have said the company's activities were a factor in the torrent.
"This is a natural disaster induced by drilling activity," said Andang Bactiar, a consultant for the oil and gas industry who is working with authorities investigating the case. "Somehow, or somewhere, several mistakes occurred that caused the mud to come from the hole."
The company declined to give its version of what happened or the steps it took to stem the mud, citing possible legal liability. But spokeswoman Yuniwati Teryana said drilling activity had not been proven to be linked to the eruption.
The well is 50 percent owned by Lapindo. Another Indonesian firm, PT Medco E&P Brantas, has a 32 percent stake and Santos Ltd. of Australia holds the remaining 18 percent.
Lapindo has made emergency payments to those who have lost homes and promises to compensate their losses.
But in a country where mistrust of government runs high after decades of dictatorship that ended only in 1998, many people fear the company will try to dodge its responsibilities. The involvement of Welfare Minister Aburizal Bakrie's family in Lapindo has only added to worries.
"We are just poor people, our rights will be torn up as usual," one resident, Sukararji, said as he stood on a dam gazing at mud that reaches the second-floor windows of his house. "We are being stepped on like ants."
After two unsuccessful attempts to stop the flow, Lapindo is digging three shafts alongside the hole, hoping to kill the eruption by pumping in concrete.
Experts are skeptical that will work.
"If they manage to stop it, it will be the first time in the world that it has been done," said geologist Arif Munsyawar.
Saturday, October 21, 2006
Ecuador suffers from more volcanic activity
"We were able to take them out last night from the most dangerous zones located on the flanks where the explosions occurred last August" said Juan Salazar, mayor of Penipe, 12 miles from the volcano.
The upper slopes of the volcano have been mostly deserted since August, but according to Salazar about 80 families had returned to attempt to farm in the ash-encrusted ground.
"They saw incandescent rocks coming down on the slopes and so they evacuated" he said. No injuries were reported. In addition to the casualties, nearly 5,000 homes were destroyed or severely damaged and tens of thousands of acres of pasture and crops were also destroyed in the August eruption, according to the Ecuadorian Civil Defence.
In Quito experts warned about renewed explosions and eruptions from the Tungurahua.
"What we have seen now is evidence that something there could be something similar to the episodes in July and August" said Hugo Yepes, director of Ecuador's Geophysics Institute. "Inside the ground there is a chamber of magma much larger than the volcano itself.".
Meanwhile further south along the Pacific rim, a strong earthquake rattled Peru's coast on Friday, but no damage or injuries were reported. The magnitude 6.4 quake struck at 5:48 a.m. below the floor of the Pacific Ocean, some 95 kilometres northwest of the coastal city of Pisco, according to Peru's Geophysics Institute.
The earthquake was felt as a long shudder in the Peruvian capital, Lima, and inland in the Andean provincial city of Huancavelica. But it caused the most alarm in Ica, a coastal city 260 kilometres to the southeast, where local radio reports said panicked residents rushed from their homes into streets and parks.
The upper slopes of the volcano have been mostly deserted since August, but according to Salazar about 80 families had returned to attempt to farm in the ash-encrusted ground.
"They saw incandescent rocks coming down on the slopes and so they evacuated" he said. No injuries were reported. In addition to the casualties, nearly 5,000 homes were destroyed or severely damaged and tens of thousands of acres of pasture and crops were also destroyed in the August eruption, according to the Ecuadorian Civil Defence.
In Quito experts warned about renewed explosions and eruptions from the Tungurahua.
"What we have seen now is evidence that something there could be something similar to the episodes in July and August" said Hugo Yepes, director of Ecuador's Geophysics Institute. "Inside the ground there is a chamber of magma much larger than the volcano itself.".
Meanwhile further south along the Pacific rim, a strong earthquake rattled Peru's coast on Friday, but no damage or injuries were reported. The magnitude 6.4 quake struck at 5:48 a.m. below the floor of the Pacific Ocean, some 95 kilometres northwest of the coastal city of Pisco, according to Peru's Geophysics Institute.
The earthquake was felt as a long shudder in the Peruvian capital, Lima, and inland in the Andean provincial city of Huancavelica. But it caused the most alarm in Ica, a coastal city 260 kilometres to the southeast, where local radio reports said panicked residents rushed from their homes into streets and parks.
Could Indonesia Geothermal energy come from volcanoes?
Indonesia, land of earthquakes and volcanos, is literally sitting on top of the solution for its energy needs: Vast reservoirs of hot water deep beneath the earth's crust can be harnessed to generate electricity.
A worker at a geothermal facility in the midst of a tropical rainforest monitors a steam pipeline Tuesday Sept. 12, 2006 in Salak, Indonesia. Indonesia's location on the so-called "Ring of Fire," a string of fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin, makes it the frequent target of deadly earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis, but has also given the fourth most populous nation what is believed to be the world's greatest geothermal resource base, with the potential to provide 21,000 megawatts (MW) _ enough to supply all of its electricity needs.
What's more, it's a clean, renewable energy source.
Yet the country continues to import millions of barrels of oil and fuel annually. Legal uncertainties, financial risks and government bureaucracy have repelled international investors from developing its geothermal resources.
Indonesia vows to pass within weeks regulations it hopes investors will find attractive, but after years of foot-dragging, not everyone is convinced.
Tapping geothermal energy makes sense for a cash-strapped government that still subsidizes fuel for its citizens, who are steadily demanding more power in the face of routine blackouts and brownouts.
The sprawling archipelago sits on what is believed to be the world's largest geothermal resource base, with the potential to provide 21,000 megawatts _ enough to supply all the energy needs for its 220 million people.
But so far existing plants have a combined capacity of just over 800 megawatts, or 4 percent of Indonesia's potential, putting it behind the United States (2,100 MW), the Philippines (1,775 MW) and Mexico (975 MW).
About three-fifths comes from Chevron Corp., the only foreign business currently developing geothermal energy in Indonesia. The U.S. energy company says it's able to do so largely because it operates on contracts signed decades ago under then-dictator Suharto.
"At that point the government had in place regulations that were very conducive to investment," said Barry Andrews, president of Chevron's Geothermal and Power, pointing to a strong central government and dependable tax regime. "We had certainty as to what to expect."
Since the mid-1980s, Chevron has operated two fields, Salak and Darajat, on the main island of Java.
Its largest plant in Salak towers over the lush rainforest _ home to gibbons, ant eaters and eagles _ where massive pipes wind through some 25,000 acres of jungle, transporting steam that turns giant turbines to produce electricity.
The water is then returned to the underground reservoir and reheated by magma to temperatures as high as 570 degrees Fahrenheit, completing the renewable energy cycle.
Twenty years ago, nearly a dozen local and foreign companies _ among them, Chevron and a company it bought last year, Unocal Corp. _ were developing geothermal in partnership with the state-run electricity company PLN and a local private firm. Investors got a great deal because PLN agreed to annual minimum purchases at prices determined in dollars instead of the local currency, the rupiah.
But the 1997-98 Asian financial crash abruptly changed all that. International investors, who pumped billions of dollars into Indonesia before Suharto's 1998 ouster, have been slow to return or simply refused.
A worker at a geothermal facility in the midst of a tropical rainforest monitors a steam pipeline Tuesday Sept. 12, 2006 in Salak, Indonesia. Indonesia's location on the so-called "Ring of Fire," a string of fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin, makes it the frequent target of deadly earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis, but has also given the fourth most populous nation what is believed to be the world's greatest geothermal resource base, with the potential to provide 21,000 megawatts (MW) _ enough to supply all of its electricity needs.
Almost all geothermal projects were stopped or canceled when it became clear that PLN was not going to be able buy the electricity as promised, said Erik Layman of the California-based Layman consultancy Energy Associates Inc.
Some contracts were taken over by the government, which has done little since then to develop them, and the terms of other stalled projects, Salak and Darajat included, were re-negotiated at lower prices, he said.
"Many of these investors had expended hundreds of millions of dollars to bring projects on line before they were canceled," said Layman, who was involved in Chevron's Darajat project from 1985 to 1988 and CalEnergy's Dieng, Patuha and Bali projects from 1994 to 1998.
MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co.'s CalEnergy took its case before international arbitrators and won _ a move some analysts say is partly responsible for the government's reluctance today to reopen the door too quickly.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono renewed pledges this year to promote alternative energy sources, but industry experts say price remains a huge obstacle.
Though long-term costs are low, the technology requires an upfront investment of more than $100 million. And because the energy must be used close to its source _ unlike coal or oil, which can be exported _ what a company gets for its electricity is key.
At present the cash-strapped government is offering just 4.5 cents kilowatt hours _ around 30 percent less than the going rate in the United States, and as much as 2 cents lower than what the Suharto government had offered.
"At that price, we're just not going to get new investment into the country," Andrews said.
He said companies like his need help _ either in higher prices or in major breaks in taxes or royalties _ before committing to more projects.
A worker at a geothermal facility in the midst of a tropical rainforest monitors a steam pipeline Tuesday Sept. 12, 2006 in Salak, Indonesia. Indonesia's location on the so-called "Ring of Fire," a string of fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin, makes it the frequent target of deadly earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis, but has also given the fourth most populous nation what is believed to be the world's greatest geothermal resource base, with the potential to provide 21,000 megawatts (MW) _ enough to supply all of its electricity needs.
While Indonesia passed a geothermal law in 2003, it has yet to approve regulations that will determine how much tax or royalties companies will have to pay, nor has it spelled out the role regional authorities will play following a post-Suharto power shift away from central government.
Sugiharto Harsoprayitno, director of the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources' geothermal department, acknowledges that it could take years for foreign investors to return and that prices couldn't go much higher, because they are already in line with prices of electricity generated through other means.
"Instead of raising prices, we're trying to find ways to reduce the cost of development," he said.
Harsoprayitno said new regulations should be finalized within weeks and, while removing companies' rights to take disputes before international arbitrators, should limit the "mess regional governments could make of things."
He said taxes will likely also be reduced.
"Sooner or later we have to develop geothermal," Harsoprayitno said. "It's not the sole solution to our energy problems, but it would certainly help."
A worker at a geothermal facility in the midst of a tropical rainforest monitors a steam pipeline Tuesday Sept. 12, 2006 in Salak, Indonesia. Indonesia's location on the so-called "Ring of Fire," a string of fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin, makes it the frequent target of deadly earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis, but has also given the fourth most populous nation what is believed to be the world's greatest geothermal resource base, with the potential to provide 21,000 megawatts (MW) _ enough to supply all of its electricity needs.
What's more, it's a clean, renewable energy source.
Yet the country continues to import millions of barrels of oil and fuel annually. Legal uncertainties, financial risks and government bureaucracy have repelled international investors from developing its geothermal resources.
Indonesia vows to pass within weeks regulations it hopes investors will find attractive, but after years of foot-dragging, not everyone is convinced.
Tapping geothermal energy makes sense for a cash-strapped government that still subsidizes fuel for its citizens, who are steadily demanding more power in the face of routine blackouts and brownouts.
The sprawling archipelago sits on what is believed to be the world's largest geothermal resource base, with the potential to provide 21,000 megawatts _ enough to supply all the energy needs for its 220 million people.
But so far existing plants have a combined capacity of just over 800 megawatts, or 4 percent of Indonesia's potential, putting it behind the United States (2,100 MW), the Philippines (1,775 MW) and Mexico (975 MW).
About three-fifths comes from Chevron Corp., the only foreign business currently developing geothermal energy in Indonesia. The U.S. energy company says it's able to do so largely because it operates on contracts signed decades ago under then-dictator Suharto.
"At that point the government had in place regulations that were very conducive to investment," said Barry Andrews, president of Chevron's Geothermal and Power, pointing to a strong central government and dependable tax regime. "We had certainty as to what to expect."
Since the mid-1980s, Chevron has operated two fields, Salak and Darajat, on the main island of Java.
Its largest plant in Salak towers over the lush rainforest _ home to gibbons, ant eaters and eagles _ where massive pipes wind through some 25,000 acres of jungle, transporting steam that turns giant turbines to produce electricity.
The water is then returned to the underground reservoir and reheated by magma to temperatures as high as 570 degrees Fahrenheit, completing the renewable energy cycle.
Twenty years ago, nearly a dozen local and foreign companies _ among them, Chevron and a company it bought last year, Unocal Corp. _ were developing geothermal in partnership with the state-run electricity company PLN and a local private firm. Investors got a great deal because PLN agreed to annual minimum purchases at prices determined in dollars instead of the local currency, the rupiah.
But the 1997-98 Asian financial crash abruptly changed all that. International investors, who pumped billions of dollars into Indonesia before Suharto's 1998 ouster, have been slow to return or simply refused.
A worker at a geothermal facility in the midst of a tropical rainforest monitors a steam pipeline Tuesday Sept. 12, 2006 in Salak, Indonesia. Indonesia's location on the so-called "Ring of Fire," a string of fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin, makes it the frequent target of deadly earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis, but has also given the fourth most populous nation what is believed to be the world's greatest geothermal resource base, with the potential to provide 21,000 megawatts (MW) _ enough to supply all of its electricity needs.
Almost all geothermal projects were stopped or canceled when it became clear that PLN was not going to be able buy the electricity as promised, said Erik Layman of the California-based Layman consultancy Energy Associates Inc.
Some contracts were taken over by the government, which has done little since then to develop them, and the terms of other stalled projects, Salak and Darajat included, were re-negotiated at lower prices, he said.
"Many of these investors had expended hundreds of millions of dollars to bring projects on line before they were canceled," said Layman, who was involved in Chevron's Darajat project from 1985 to 1988 and CalEnergy's Dieng, Patuha and Bali projects from 1994 to 1998.
MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co.'s CalEnergy took its case before international arbitrators and won _ a move some analysts say is partly responsible for the government's reluctance today to reopen the door too quickly.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono renewed pledges this year to promote alternative energy sources, but industry experts say price remains a huge obstacle.
Though long-term costs are low, the technology requires an upfront investment of more than $100 million. And because the energy must be used close to its source _ unlike coal or oil, which can be exported _ what a company gets for its electricity is key.
At present the cash-strapped government is offering just 4.5 cents kilowatt hours _ around 30 percent less than the going rate in the United States, and as much as 2 cents lower than what the Suharto government had offered.
"At that price, we're just not going to get new investment into the country," Andrews said.
He said companies like his need help _ either in higher prices or in major breaks in taxes or royalties _ before committing to more projects.
A worker at a geothermal facility in the midst of a tropical rainforest monitors a steam pipeline Tuesday Sept. 12, 2006 in Salak, Indonesia. Indonesia's location on the so-called "Ring of Fire," a string of fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin, makes it the frequent target of deadly earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis, but has also given the fourth most populous nation what is believed to be the world's greatest geothermal resource base, with the potential to provide 21,000 megawatts (MW) _ enough to supply all of its electricity needs.
While Indonesia passed a geothermal law in 2003, it has yet to approve regulations that will determine how much tax or royalties companies will have to pay, nor has it spelled out the role regional authorities will play following a post-Suharto power shift away from central government.
Sugiharto Harsoprayitno, director of the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources' geothermal department, acknowledges that it could take years for foreign investors to return and that prices couldn't go much higher, because they are already in line with prices of electricity generated through other means.
"Instead of raising prices, we're trying to find ways to reduce the cost of development," he said.
Harsoprayitno said new regulations should be finalized within weeks and, while removing companies' rights to take disputes before international arbitrators, should limit the "mess regional governments could make of things."
He said taxes will likely also be reduced.
"Sooner or later we have to develop geothermal," Harsoprayitno said. "It's not the sole solution to our energy problems, but it would certainly help."
The Ring of Fire is full of volcanic activity!
A strong earthquake was recorded off Papua New Guinea at 9:25 a.m. local time (2325 GMT), the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said on Tuesday.There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties after the magnitude 6.5 earthquake, whose epicentre was under the sea 577 km (358 miles) northeast of Port Moresby.
The USGS described the quake as "strong" on its website
(http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/Quakes/ustyac.p hp)but said no tsunami warning had been issued.
"No destructive Pacific-wide Tsunami threat exists based on historical earthquake and tsunami data," it said.The area of the quake is in the Pacific "Ring of Fire", a seismically active area with frequent earthquakes and volcanos.
The USGS described the quake as "strong" on its website
(http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/Quakes/ustyac.p hp)but said no tsunami warning had been issued.
"No destructive Pacific-wide Tsunami threat exists based on historical earthquake and tsunami data," it said.The area of the quake is in the Pacific "Ring of Fire", a seismically active area with frequent earthquakes and volcanos.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Volcanoes can affect the Earth's crust
Hawaii's Big Island is rattled by thousands of minor earthquakes a year, mainly from volcanic eruptions.
But the strongest and most destructive types — like Sunday's magnitude-6.7 that caused blackouts and landslides — are rare and are caused not by eruptions, but by the buildup of stress deep in the crust as volcanoes grow and spread, experts say.
The Big Island is the youngest in a ring of volcanoes stretching some 3,500 miles across the Pacific Ocean. As new island volcanoes form and old ones are carried away, the process can sometimes release pent-up pressure in the form of quakes.
"If you think of it as piling up more and more dirt, it's eventually going to slide," said seismologist Kate Hutton of the California Institute of Technology.
The Big Island is commonly rocked by quakes in the 3- and 4-magnitude range that are triggered by volcanic eruptions. Prior to Sunday's shaker, volcanic activity in the area had been relatively quiet, according to the U.S. Geological Survey's Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.
On the Net:
U.S. Geological Survey: http://www.usgs.gov
USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory: http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov
Since January 2005, scientists have recorded fewer than 10 quakes a week beneath the summit of the world's largest volcano, 13,677-foot Mauna Loa. As for Mauna Loa's neighbor, Kilauea, scientists recorded no significant change in seismic activity before or after Sunday's quake.
Volcanic earthquakes — those triggered by eruptions — are usually detected by the hundreds of swarms of temblors that occur several hours or days before an eruption. The type of quake seen on Sunday, a tectonic earthquake, does not occur in any regular pattern and is harder to predict.
In some other parts of the world, such as Southern California, volcanoes play little or no role in earthquakes. These quakes are caused instead when the plates that make up the Earth's crust grind against each other and break or slip.
Scientists said a possible explanation for Sunday's quake is that, as volcanoes grow over time, their weight presses down on the crust, which can then give way.
"It's like someone sitting on mattress," said Jim Kauahikaua, scientist in charge of the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. "The crust is flexed by the weight of the island."
Hawaii's largest quake on record was an 1868 magnitude-7.9 temblor that spawned a tsunami and numerous landslides. Seventy-seven people died, according to the USGS. In 1951, a magnitude-6.9 quake severely damaged houses and churches on the Kona coast.
But the strongest and most destructive types — like Sunday's magnitude-6.7 that caused blackouts and landslides — are rare and are caused not by eruptions, but by the buildup of stress deep in the crust as volcanoes grow and spread, experts say.
The Big Island is the youngest in a ring of volcanoes stretching some 3,500 miles across the Pacific Ocean. As new island volcanoes form and old ones are carried away, the process can sometimes release pent-up pressure in the form of quakes.
"If you think of it as piling up more and more dirt, it's eventually going to slide," said seismologist Kate Hutton of the California Institute of Technology.
The Big Island is commonly rocked by quakes in the 3- and 4-magnitude range that are triggered by volcanic eruptions. Prior to Sunday's shaker, volcanic activity in the area had been relatively quiet, according to the U.S. Geological Survey's Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.
On the Net:
U.S. Geological Survey: http://www.usgs.gov
USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory: http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov
Since January 2005, scientists have recorded fewer than 10 quakes a week beneath the summit of the world's largest volcano, 13,677-foot Mauna Loa. As for Mauna Loa's neighbor, Kilauea, scientists recorded no significant change in seismic activity before or after Sunday's quake.
Volcanic earthquakes — those triggered by eruptions — are usually detected by the hundreds of swarms of temblors that occur several hours or days before an eruption. The type of quake seen on Sunday, a tectonic earthquake, does not occur in any regular pattern and is harder to predict.
In some other parts of the world, such as Southern California, volcanoes play little or no role in earthquakes. These quakes are caused instead when the plates that make up the Earth's crust grind against each other and break or slip.
Scientists said a possible explanation for Sunday's quake is that, as volcanoes grow over time, their weight presses down on the crust, which can then give way.
"It's like someone sitting on mattress," said Jim Kauahikaua, scientist in charge of the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. "The crust is flexed by the weight of the island."
Hawaii's largest quake on record was an 1868 magnitude-7.9 temblor that spawned a tsunami and numerous landslides. Seventy-seven people died, according to the USGS. In 1951, a magnitude-6.9 quake severely damaged houses and churches on the Kona coast.
Saturday, October 14, 2006
What Alaska is made of despite volcanoes
One hundred thousand glaciers, 41 volcanoes that have erupted since the 1700s, 11 percent of the world's earthquakes: Alaska has its share of superlatives. And here's another one-Alaska has the largest maar on Earth.
Tim Tannenbaum stands on the shore of Devil Mountain Lakes maar, a volcanic crater on the northern Seward Peninsula and the largest of its type in the world. Jim Beget photo.
What's a maar? It looks a lot like a lake. It's circular and it exists because of colossal explosions that happened when molten rock met water. Jim Beget has visited the world's largest set of maars, located on the northern horn of the Seward Peninsula east of Shishmaref.
Landforms shaped in dramatic fashion intrigue Beget, who works for the Alaska Volcano Observatory and the Department of Geology and Geophysics at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. At a recent science conference he showed a photo of the Devil Mountain Lakes maar, the largest one on Earth.
The Seward Peninsula, home to Nome, Shishmaref, Elim and other towns and villages, seems an unlikely place for volcanoes. Unlike the Aleutian Islands, the Alaska Peninsula, or the Wrangell Mountains, the Seward Peninsula has no cone-shaped, steaming peaks. But the nose of Alaska that juts into the Bering Sea has several circular lakes that hint at the area's steamy past.
The Devil Mountain Lakes maar is about 8 kilometers (5 miles) in diameter. In a remote section of the Seward Peninsula, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) west of Kotzebue, it formed about 21,000 years ago when volcanic eruptions forced their way through permafrost. The frozen ground created the exceptional size of the maar, Beget said, because molten rock moving to the surface creates violent explosions when it meets water.
Maars form when lava hits ground water, a shallow lake, or permafrost, because water expands by 1,000 times when it turns to steam. The permafrost at the Devil Lakes site provided a steady supply of water for the rising lava, making the northern Seward Peninsula a loud place about 21,000 years ago.
"Devil Mountain was a big eruption with lots of magma, and because every bit of the ground had ice in it, it remained explosive as long as the eruption occurred," Beget said.
The result was one of about a dozen maars in Alaska, and the largest known maar crater in the world.
Volcanoes' interaction with permafrost results in one unusual Alaska landform, and Beget described another at the same conference-a landscape covered with boulders that a giant earthquake shook loose from a mountain.
North of Cantwell and east of the Parks highway stands Panorama Mountain, a hulk of pointy black spires. Look on the west side of the mountain, Beget said, and you see a gash from a prehistoric rock avalanche that traveled across the Nenana River. Across the river are former pieces of Panorama Mountain as large as houses.
Panorama Mountain sits on the western end of the Denali fault. The eastern portion of the fault ruptured in the magnitude 7.9 earthquake of 2002, the largest earthquake on the planet that year. Scientists are trying to find out when the fault last ripped at its western end, the part that runs beneath the Parks Highway and near Cantwell.
Beget and Mary Keskinen, also of UAF's Department of Geology and Geophysics, have taken a close look at the lichens clinging to the rocks that fell during the Panorama Mountain slide. The oldest lichens on the rocks date back to 400 years, making the geologists think the last great earthquake on the western portion of the fault may have happened around the year 1600. Since then, the fault has been building up stress, perhaps similar to the energy that the great 2002 earthquake released on the other side of the Parks Highway.
Tim Tannenbaum stands on the shore of Devil Mountain Lakes maar, a volcanic crater on the northern Seward Peninsula and the largest of its type in the world. Jim Beget photo.
What's a maar? It looks a lot like a lake. It's circular and it exists because of colossal explosions that happened when molten rock met water. Jim Beget has visited the world's largest set of maars, located on the northern horn of the Seward Peninsula east of Shishmaref.
Landforms shaped in dramatic fashion intrigue Beget, who works for the Alaska Volcano Observatory and the Department of Geology and Geophysics at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. At a recent science conference he showed a photo of the Devil Mountain Lakes maar, the largest one on Earth.
The Seward Peninsula, home to Nome, Shishmaref, Elim and other towns and villages, seems an unlikely place for volcanoes. Unlike the Aleutian Islands, the Alaska Peninsula, or the Wrangell Mountains, the Seward Peninsula has no cone-shaped, steaming peaks. But the nose of Alaska that juts into the Bering Sea has several circular lakes that hint at the area's steamy past.
The Devil Mountain Lakes maar is about 8 kilometers (5 miles) in diameter. In a remote section of the Seward Peninsula, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) west of Kotzebue, it formed about 21,000 years ago when volcanic eruptions forced their way through permafrost. The frozen ground created the exceptional size of the maar, Beget said, because molten rock moving to the surface creates violent explosions when it meets water.
Maars form when lava hits ground water, a shallow lake, or permafrost, because water expands by 1,000 times when it turns to steam. The permafrost at the Devil Lakes site provided a steady supply of water for the rising lava, making the northern Seward Peninsula a loud place about 21,000 years ago.
"Devil Mountain was a big eruption with lots of magma, and because every bit of the ground had ice in it, it remained explosive as long as the eruption occurred," Beget said.
The result was one of about a dozen maars in Alaska, and the largest known maar crater in the world.
Volcanoes' interaction with permafrost results in one unusual Alaska landform, and Beget described another at the same conference-a landscape covered with boulders that a giant earthquake shook loose from a mountain.
North of Cantwell and east of the Parks highway stands Panorama Mountain, a hulk of pointy black spires. Look on the west side of the mountain, Beget said, and you see a gash from a prehistoric rock avalanche that traveled across the Nenana River. Across the river are former pieces of Panorama Mountain as large as houses.
Panorama Mountain sits on the western end of the Denali fault. The eastern portion of the fault ruptured in the magnitude 7.9 earthquake of 2002, the largest earthquake on the planet that year. Scientists are trying to find out when the fault last ripped at its western end, the part that runs beneath the Parks Highway and near Cantwell.
Beget and Mary Keskinen, also of UAF's Department of Geology and Geophysics, have taken a close look at the lichens clinging to the rocks that fell during the Panorama Mountain slide. The oldest lichens on the rocks date back to 400 years, making the geologists think the last great earthquake on the western portion of the fault may have happened around the year 1600. Since then, the fault has been building up stress, perhaps similar to the energy that the great 2002 earthquake released on the other side of the Parks Highway.
Protecting water source from volcano eruptions
UNICEF has been working with more than 100 villages on the island of Grand Comore to ensure continued access to safe, clean water following yet another eruption of the notoriously active volcano, Mount Karthala.
Karthala’s recent eruptions – two in the last year and a half – have polluted the island’s fragile water source and left the island covered in debris.
Tahir, 14, still has a rasping cough from inhaling volcanic ash, as well as disturbing memories of the event.
“I was scared but my father told me not to worry. He told me to go to bed but I couldn’t sleep. I stayed up until morning and saw how yellow the sun was. Then I saw the ash falling from the sky like sand,” he said.
A long-term solution
Grand Comore has no significant rivers or streams so a large portion of the population depends on rainwater gathered in large cisterns or tanks. Following the eruptions, the residents’ water became clogged with ash.
As a short-term solution, UNICEF trucked in millions of litres of fresh drinking water for more than 150,000 people.
But the main goal is to make sure the invaluable cisterns will be protected from future eruptions. More than 1,500 cisterns have already been covered, ensuring a lasting supply of clean, safe water.
“This cistern is covered with metal sheets provided by UNICEF. My neighbours are also coming here to fetch their drinking water,” said local teacher, Ben Said.
Cleaner water, better health
The villagers’ health has improved since the cisterns were covered. There are fewer cases of diarrhoea, especially amongst children. The number of malaria cases is also expected to drop, now that the water is protected from mosquitoes.
UNICEF is currently working to educate people about the importance of staying healthy by protecting their water sources.
UNICEF Assistant Operations Officer Bernadette Nyiratunga says villagers responded to the crisis by working closely with UNICEF and its partners, and doing what they could to help one another.
“The villagers helped in distributing all the materials and provided the labour. It makes us feel we did something that was really needed and which was really appreciated,” Ms. Nyiratunga said.
Karthala’s recent eruptions – two in the last year and a half – have polluted the island’s fragile water source and left the island covered in debris.
Tahir, 14, still has a rasping cough from inhaling volcanic ash, as well as disturbing memories of the event.
“I was scared but my father told me not to worry. He told me to go to bed but I couldn’t sleep. I stayed up until morning and saw how yellow the sun was. Then I saw the ash falling from the sky like sand,” he said.
A long-term solution
Grand Comore has no significant rivers or streams so a large portion of the population depends on rainwater gathered in large cisterns or tanks. Following the eruptions, the residents’ water became clogged with ash.
As a short-term solution, UNICEF trucked in millions of litres of fresh drinking water for more than 150,000 people.
But the main goal is to make sure the invaluable cisterns will be protected from future eruptions. More than 1,500 cisterns have already been covered, ensuring a lasting supply of clean, safe water.
“This cistern is covered with metal sheets provided by UNICEF. My neighbours are also coming here to fetch their drinking water,” said local teacher, Ben Said.
Cleaner water, better health
The villagers’ health has improved since the cisterns were covered. There are fewer cases of diarrhoea, especially amongst children. The number of malaria cases is also expected to drop, now that the water is protected from mosquitoes.
UNICEF is currently working to educate people about the importance of staying healthy by protecting their water sources.
UNICEF Assistant Operations Officer Bernadette Nyiratunga says villagers responded to the crisis by working closely with UNICEF and its partners, and doing what they could to help one another.
“The villagers helped in distributing all the materials and provided the labour. It makes us feel we did something that was really needed and which was really appreciated,” Ms. Nyiratunga said.
Monday, October 09, 2006
Rabaul volcano eruption is positively influenced by wind
Favourable winds have saved the tiny town of Rabaul on Papua New Guinea's New Britain island from the effects of a devastating volcanic eruption.
Mount Tavurvur, on the outskirts of the former provincial capital Rabaul, erupted yesterday with a blast that shattered windows up to 12 kilometres away.
Around 200 people in nearby villages were evacuated by boats as the 700-metre peak spewed ash, rock and smoke up to 18 kilometres into the air.
Local hotel owner Bruce Alexander says if it was not for favourable winds, the damage could have been far worse than the 1994 eruption that destroyed much of Rabaul and forced the construction of a new capital, Kokopo, 20 kilometres away.
"It was an extremely lucky escape because the volume of ash that was pumping out, if it had landed on any built-up areas, you would have had flats, buildings, but it just so happens that it went over uninhabited areas," he said.
'Sonic boom'
Queensland woman Julie McLean, whose family is living 17 kilometres from the volcano, says the initial eruptions were like sonic booms.
She says it was very frightening, especially for her daughters.
"They were OK until we went into town and saw all the hundreds of people on the roads and all the cars backed up and we had to have the windscreen wipers on because the ash was so heavy," she said.
"When we got home, I knew we had to start to pack in case we had to evacuate and they were very worried about that, and very concerned about having to leave the animals."
Mrs McLean says many locals feared the eruptions would cause a tidal wave.
"There was a lot of panic, a lot of local people ran into the hills thinking the sea would be rising and there would be tidal waves and that the other volcano which blew in '94 was going to go as well," she said.
"There was a lot of rumours and a lot of fear ... and a lot of the local people packed up and ran away."
There have been no deaths or injuries reported.
Mount Tavurvur, on the outskirts of the former provincial capital Rabaul, erupted yesterday with a blast that shattered windows up to 12 kilometres away.
Around 200 people in nearby villages were evacuated by boats as the 700-metre peak spewed ash, rock and smoke up to 18 kilometres into the air.
Local hotel owner Bruce Alexander says if it was not for favourable winds, the damage could have been far worse than the 1994 eruption that destroyed much of Rabaul and forced the construction of a new capital, Kokopo, 20 kilometres away.
"It was an extremely lucky escape because the volume of ash that was pumping out, if it had landed on any built-up areas, you would have had flats, buildings, but it just so happens that it went over uninhabited areas," he said.
'Sonic boom'
Queensland woman Julie McLean, whose family is living 17 kilometres from the volcano, says the initial eruptions were like sonic booms.
She says it was very frightening, especially for her daughters.
"They were OK until we went into town and saw all the hundreds of people on the roads and all the cars backed up and we had to have the windscreen wipers on because the ash was so heavy," she said.
"When we got home, I knew we had to start to pack in case we had to evacuate and they were very worried about that, and very concerned about having to leave the animals."
Mrs McLean says many locals feared the eruptions would cause a tidal wave.
"There was a lot of panic, a lot of local people ran into the hills thinking the sea would be rising and there would be tidal waves and that the other volcano which blew in '94 was going to go as well," she said.
"There was a lot of rumours and a lot of fear ... and a lot of the local people packed up and ran away."
There have been no deaths or injuries reported.
Saturday, October 07, 2006
After evacuating due to volcano eruption, looting is the next threat
An erupting volcano in Papua New Guinea has prompted a mass evacuation of Rabaul with local officials fearing looters will descend on the emptied town tonight.
Under heavy ash falls and sharp volcanic shock waves, an estimated 2,000 people today left Rabaul on the eastern tip of the island of New Britain but so far there were no reports of injuries.
Police reserves have been called in and armed police patrols have been stepped up to deter looters.
Mt Tavurvur on Rabaul's outskirts erupted about 8.45am (0845 AEST) sending up huge plumes of ash and causing shock waves that rattled and broke windows in the town.
By late afternoon the vigorous volcanic activity had subsided.
Rabaul Chamber of Commerce President and hotelier Bruce Alexander said around 90 per cent of Rabaul's population left town, leaving behind only essential personnel.
"We are going to have looting problems tonight we think, there are already quite a few people up in the bush we're getting reports of, with pinch bars and the whole lot. It's not over yet.
"The good people will stay away and the bad dudes will come in.
"We've told all the lads on the street, there's a curfew tonight and don't show your face."
In 1994, big eruptions of Tavurvur and nearby Vulcan destroyed much of Rabaul with minimal loss of life because of timely evacuations, but heavy looting did occur.
PNG's Mining Department said in a volcano bulletin today that ash had fallen over a wide area including the town of Kokopo across the Simpson Harbour from Rabaul.
Thunder and lightning were reported within the ash column which had risen to around 10,000 metres though the full height of the mushroom cloud could not be determined.
Alexander said the worst part was a "dramatic percussive effect" in which roller doors were blown off their tracks and doors shook.
"It shakes the whole hotel and it's like being directly underneath an artillery barrage."
The Rabaul Volcanological Observatory reported a window blown in by a volcanic air blast and said more damage was expected closer to Tavurvur.
An observatory officer said the eruption was expected to to continue subsiding and monitors did not anticipate it would turn into a major one like 1994.
Bev Martin, a proprietor of the Rapopo Plantation Resort across the water from Rabaul, said this afternoon that everything had been obscured by falling ash.
"We can't see anything. It's just really cloudy and dark and dusty.
"We just hear it going off all the time, big exploding noises."
Martin said people who went through the 1994 eruption were not too worried by the latest eruption but new people in town might be more concerned.
All flights into Tokua Airport across the harbour from Rabaul have been cancelled because of the ash falls.
Under heavy ash falls and sharp volcanic shock waves, an estimated 2,000 people today left Rabaul on the eastern tip of the island of New Britain but so far there were no reports of injuries.
Police reserves have been called in and armed police patrols have been stepped up to deter looters.
Mt Tavurvur on Rabaul's outskirts erupted about 8.45am (0845 AEST) sending up huge plumes of ash and causing shock waves that rattled and broke windows in the town.
By late afternoon the vigorous volcanic activity had subsided.
Rabaul Chamber of Commerce President and hotelier Bruce Alexander said around 90 per cent of Rabaul's population left town, leaving behind only essential personnel.
"We are going to have looting problems tonight we think, there are already quite a few people up in the bush we're getting reports of, with pinch bars and the whole lot. It's not over yet.
"The good people will stay away and the bad dudes will come in.
"We've told all the lads on the street, there's a curfew tonight and don't show your face."
In 1994, big eruptions of Tavurvur and nearby Vulcan destroyed much of Rabaul with minimal loss of life because of timely evacuations, but heavy looting did occur.
PNG's Mining Department said in a volcano bulletin today that ash had fallen over a wide area including the town of Kokopo across the Simpson Harbour from Rabaul.
Thunder and lightning were reported within the ash column which had risen to around 10,000 metres though the full height of the mushroom cloud could not be determined.
Alexander said the worst part was a "dramatic percussive effect" in which roller doors were blown off their tracks and doors shook.
"It shakes the whole hotel and it's like being directly underneath an artillery barrage."
The Rabaul Volcanological Observatory reported a window blown in by a volcanic air blast and said more damage was expected closer to Tavurvur.
An observatory officer said the eruption was expected to to continue subsiding and monitors did not anticipate it would turn into a major one like 1994.
Bev Martin, a proprietor of the Rapopo Plantation Resort across the water from Rabaul, said this afternoon that everything had been obscured by falling ash.
"We can't see anything. It's just really cloudy and dark and dusty.
"We just hear it going off all the time, big exploding noises."
Martin said people who went through the 1994 eruption were not too worried by the latest eruption but new people in town might be more concerned.
All flights into Tokua Airport across the harbour from Rabaul have been cancelled because of the ash falls.
Numerous residents are homeless due to mud volcano
Residents of the Indonesian village of Sidoarjo remained homeless on Monday after vast mudslides continued to flood the area.
Four months ago, a torrent of hot mud from deep beneath the surface of Indonesia's seismically charged Java island began surging from a natural gas exploration site following a drilling accident.
The "mud volcano" pours out some 126- thousand cubic metres (163- thousand cubic yards) of mud every day.
Often spewing out in geyser-like eruptions, the mud has left some 665 acres swamped or abandoned as unsafe, forcing more than 10-thousand people from their homes.
Workers in Sidoarjo battled to build a dam next to the railway tracks to stop the flow.
The mud, which stands as deep as 14.6 metres (16 feet) in places, has submerged or washed into houses in four villages. At least 20 factories and many acres of rice fields and prawn farms have been destroyed.
Experts say the mud volcano is one of the largest ever recorded on land.
Geologists fear the technology may not exist to stop the eruption, saying mud could flow for years or even centuries, or stop on its own at any time.
The mud is believed to come from a reservoir 3 and a half miles (25.7 kilometres) below the surface that has been pressurised by shifts in the crust or by the accumulation of hydrocarbon gases.
The government recently gave permission to dump the mud into the sea via a local river.
But experts question whether that will get rid of the sludge faster than it gushes from the hole, and environmentalists are opposing the plan as a threat to the marine ecosystem.
Four months ago, a torrent of hot mud from deep beneath the surface of Indonesia's seismically charged Java island began surging from a natural gas exploration site following a drilling accident.
The "mud volcano" pours out some 126- thousand cubic metres (163- thousand cubic yards) of mud every day.
Often spewing out in geyser-like eruptions, the mud has left some 665 acres swamped or abandoned as unsafe, forcing more than 10-thousand people from their homes.
Workers in Sidoarjo battled to build a dam next to the railway tracks to stop the flow.
The mud, which stands as deep as 14.6 metres (16 feet) in places, has submerged or washed into houses in four villages. At least 20 factories and many acres of rice fields and prawn farms have been destroyed.
Experts say the mud volcano is one of the largest ever recorded on land.
Geologists fear the technology may not exist to stop the eruption, saying mud could flow for years or even centuries, or stop on its own at any time.
The mud is believed to come from a reservoir 3 and a half miles (25.7 kilometres) below the surface that has been pressurised by shifts in the crust or by the accumulation of hydrocarbon gases.
The government recently gave permission to dump the mud into the sea via a local river.
But experts question whether that will get rid of the sludge faster than it gushes from the hole, and environmentalists are opposing the plan as a threat to the marine ecosystem.
Eruption makes history of 20th century!
In June 1912, Novarupta—one of a chain of volcanoes on the Alaska Peninsula—erupted in what turned out to be the largest blast of the twentieth century. It was so powerful that it drained magma from under another volcano, Mount Katmai, six miles east, causing the summit of Katmai to collapse to form a caldera half a mile deep. Novarupta also expelled three cubic miles of magma and ash into the air, which fell to cover an area of 3,000 square miles more than a foot deep.
Despite the fact that the eruption was comparable to that of the far more famous eruption of Krakatau in Indonesia in 1883 and so near the continental United States, it was hardly known at the time because the area was so remote from English-speaking people.
Almost a hundred years later, researchers are paying attention. Novarupta is near the Arctic Circle and its impact on climate appears to be quite different from that of "ordinary" tropical volcanoes, according to recent research by climatologists using a NASA computer model.
When a volcano anywhere erupts, it does more than spew clouds of ash, which can shadow a region from sunlight and cool it for a few days. It also spews sulfur dioxide. If the eruption is strongly vertical, it shoots that sulfur dioxide high into the stratosphere more than 10 miles above Earth.
Up in the stratosphere, sulfur dioxide reacts with water vapor to form sulfate aerosols. Because these aerosols float above the altitude of rain, they don't get washed out. They linger, reflecting sunlight and cooling Earth's surface.
This can create a kind of nuclear winter (a.k.a. "volcanic winter") for a year or more after an eruption. In April 1815, for instance, the Tambora volcano in Indonesia erupted. The following year, 1816, was called "the year without a summer," with snow falling across the United States in July. Even the smaller June 1991 eruption of Pinatubo in the Philippines cooled the average temperature of the northern hemisphere summer of 1992 to well below average.
But both those volcanoes as well as Krakatau were in the tropics.
Novarupta is just south of the Arctic Circle.
Using a NASA computer model at the the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), Prof. Alan Robock of Rutgers University and colleagues found that Novarupta's effects on the world's climate would have been different. (Their research was funded by the National Science Foundation.)
Robock explains: "The stratosphere's average circulation is from the equator to the poles, so aerosols from tropical volcanoes tend to spread across all latitudes both north and south of the Equator." Aerosols would quickly circulate to all parts of the globe.
But the NASA GISS climate model showed that aerosols from an arctic eruption such as Novarupta tend to stay north of 30ºN—that is, no further south than the continental United States or Europe. Indeed, they would mix with the rest of Earth's atmosphere only very slowly.
This bottling up of Novarupta's aerosols in the north would make itself felt, strangely enough, in India. According to the computer model, the Novarupta blast would have weakened India's summer monsoon, producing "an abnormally warm and dry summer over northern India," says Robock.
Why India? Cooling of the northern hemisphere by Novarupta would set in motion a chain of events involving land and sea surface temperatures, the flow of air over the Himalayan mountains and, finally, clouds and rain over India. It's devilishly complex, which is why supercomputers are needed to do the calculations.
To check the results, Robock and colleagues are examining weather and river flow data from Asia, India, and Africa in 1913, the year after Novarupta. They are also investigating the consequences of other high-latitude eruptions in the last few centuries.
Do Indians need to keep an eye on Arctic volcanoes? The GISS computer says so.
Despite the fact that the eruption was comparable to that of the far more famous eruption of Krakatau in Indonesia in 1883 and so near the continental United States, it was hardly known at the time because the area was so remote from English-speaking people.
Almost a hundred years later, researchers are paying attention. Novarupta is near the Arctic Circle and its impact on climate appears to be quite different from that of "ordinary" tropical volcanoes, according to recent research by climatologists using a NASA computer model.
When a volcano anywhere erupts, it does more than spew clouds of ash, which can shadow a region from sunlight and cool it for a few days. It also spews sulfur dioxide. If the eruption is strongly vertical, it shoots that sulfur dioxide high into the stratosphere more than 10 miles above Earth.
Up in the stratosphere, sulfur dioxide reacts with water vapor to form sulfate aerosols. Because these aerosols float above the altitude of rain, they don't get washed out. They linger, reflecting sunlight and cooling Earth's surface.
This can create a kind of nuclear winter (a.k.a. "volcanic winter") for a year or more after an eruption. In April 1815, for instance, the Tambora volcano in Indonesia erupted. The following year, 1816, was called "the year without a summer," with snow falling across the United States in July. Even the smaller June 1991 eruption of Pinatubo in the Philippines cooled the average temperature of the northern hemisphere summer of 1992 to well below average.
But both those volcanoes as well as Krakatau were in the tropics.
Novarupta is just south of the Arctic Circle.
Using a NASA computer model at the the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), Prof. Alan Robock of Rutgers University and colleagues found that Novarupta's effects on the world's climate would have been different. (Their research was funded by the National Science Foundation.)
Robock explains: "The stratosphere's average circulation is from the equator to the poles, so aerosols from tropical volcanoes tend to spread across all latitudes both north and south of the Equator." Aerosols would quickly circulate to all parts of the globe.
But the NASA GISS climate model showed that aerosols from an arctic eruption such as Novarupta tend to stay north of 30ºN—that is, no further south than the continental United States or Europe. Indeed, they would mix with the rest of Earth's atmosphere only very slowly.
This bottling up of Novarupta's aerosols in the north would make itself felt, strangely enough, in India. According to the computer model, the Novarupta blast would have weakened India's summer monsoon, producing "an abnormally warm and dry summer over northern India," says Robock.
Why India? Cooling of the northern hemisphere by Novarupta would set in motion a chain of events involving land and sea surface temperatures, the flow of air over the Himalayan mountains and, finally, clouds and rain over India. It's devilishly complex, which is why supercomputers are needed to do the calculations.
To check the results, Robock and colleagues are examining weather and river flow data from Asia, India, and Africa in 1913, the year after Novarupta. They are also investigating the consequences of other high-latitude eruptions in the last few centuries.
Do Indians need to keep an eye on Arctic volcanoes? The GISS computer says so.
Ruahepu volcano shows signs of activity
BAD weather hampered scientists’ investigation into whether an eruption occurred on Mt Ruapehu on Wednesday night.
The 10.30pm event was first thought to be an eruption, but was later described as a moderate volcanic earthquake by Department of Conservation (DoC) scientists.
The damaging of a DoC monitoring sensor indicated there may have been some sort of eruption.
Scientists now have to wait until the weather clears – possibly at the weekend – before they can determine whether there was an eruption on the mountain or not.
The crater basin has been placed on high risk warning, while the Whangaehu, Mangaturuturu and Whakapapaiti valleys are at medium risk.
DoC conservancy advisory scientist Dr Harry Keys said scientists from the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences/GeoNet accompanied them on an aerial investigation of the crater to see if the lake was surrounded by black snow.
However, poor weather prevented any view, he said.
“We then travelled by road around to the Desert Rd and were able to inspect the Whangaehu River at one point. We found no sign of a lahar having travelled down the river.
Indications from the monitoring equipment are that any eruption, if there was one, was likely to have been small and any associated lahar too small to be detected off the mountain.”
The Eastern Ruapehu Lahar Alarm and Warning System (ERLAWS) detected the event, he said.
Dave Wakelin, of DoC, said yesterday the lahar, a gas build-up that threw a volume of water, was a normal occurrence.
Wednesday’s event was a “good practice for the main event”, which was expected either this summer or next.
Although the latest eruption was not as serious as in 1995-96, it was significant enough to set off the sensors. The main point of concern on the lahar’s trail down the Whangaehu was at Tangiwai.
Because material dropped out and settled in the Tangiwai area during that event, the riverbed was raised by two metres.
A road and rail bridge was also built and an alarm system installed last year.
Mr Wakelin said as that lahars worked opposite to floods, the effect on the Whanganui River would be minimal.
“Lahars are back-to-front of floods. It releases the further it travels from the mountain and the less it becomes.”
GNS Science volcanologist Steve Sherburn said the crater was “very quiet all day” yesterday and scientists accepted they would just have to sit and wait for the weather to clear before they could determine if there had been an eruption.
But if there was one, he agreed with Mr Keys that it would have been small.
The scientists needed proof before raising the alarm level to 2.
Although there had been earthquakes in the region lately they were not always associated with eruptions.
“Only some of them. That’s what makes it a little bit difficult. If it was a one-to-one relationship it would be fine. We’ll just have to sit tight and see if the volcano does anything over the next few days.”
Wednesday night’s activity wasn’t exciting enough for Whangaehu Beach Rd resident Yvonne Cavanagh to know about it.
When the Chronicle called it was the first she’d heard of any activity, she said.
The Cavanaghs’ property is about 90 metres from the river and about 8kms from the Tasman Sea.
The closing of the Whakapapa and Turoa skifields yesterday was not because of the eruption, rather the gusty winds and “very cold” conditions.
The 10.30pm event was first thought to be an eruption, but was later described as a moderate volcanic earthquake by Department of Conservation (DoC) scientists.
The damaging of a DoC monitoring sensor indicated there may have been some sort of eruption.
Scientists now have to wait until the weather clears – possibly at the weekend – before they can determine whether there was an eruption on the mountain or not.
The crater basin has been placed on high risk warning, while the Whangaehu, Mangaturuturu and Whakapapaiti valleys are at medium risk.
DoC conservancy advisory scientist Dr Harry Keys said scientists from the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences/GeoNet accompanied them on an aerial investigation of the crater to see if the lake was surrounded by black snow.
However, poor weather prevented any view, he said.
“We then travelled by road around to the Desert Rd and were able to inspect the Whangaehu River at one point. We found no sign of a lahar having travelled down the river.
Indications from the monitoring equipment are that any eruption, if there was one, was likely to have been small and any associated lahar too small to be detected off the mountain.”
The Eastern Ruapehu Lahar Alarm and Warning System (ERLAWS) detected the event, he said.
Dave Wakelin, of DoC, said yesterday the lahar, a gas build-up that threw a volume of water, was a normal occurrence.
Wednesday’s event was a “good practice for the main event”, which was expected either this summer or next.
Although the latest eruption was not as serious as in 1995-96, it was significant enough to set off the sensors. The main point of concern on the lahar’s trail down the Whangaehu was at Tangiwai.
Because material dropped out and settled in the Tangiwai area during that event, the riverbed was raised by two metres.
A road and rail bridge was also built and an alarm system installed last year.
Mr Wakelin said as that lahars worked opposite to floods, the effect on the Whanganui River would be minimal.
“Lahars are back-to-front of floods. It releases the further it travels from the mountain and the less it becomes.”
GNS Science volcanologist Steve Sherburn said the crater was “very quiet all day” yesterday and scientists accepted they would just have to sit and wait for the weather to clear before they could determine if there had been an eruption.
But if there was one, he agreed with Mr Keys that it would have been small.
The scientists needed proof before raising the alarm level to 2.
Although there had been earthquakes in the region lately they were not always associated with eruptions.
“Only some of them. That’s what makes it a little bit difficult. If it was a one-to-one relationship it would be fine. We’ll just have to sit tight and see if the volcano does anything over the next few days.”
Wednesday night’s activity wasn’t exciting enough for Whangaehu Beach Rd resident Yvonne Cavanagh to know about it.
When the Chronicle called it was the first she’d heard of any activity, she said.
The Cavanaghs’ property is about 90 metres from the river and about 8kms from the Tasman Sea.
The closing of the Whakapapa and Turoa skifields yesterday was not because of the eruption, rather the gusty winds and “very cold” conditions.
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
Mud volcano, a huge problem in Indonesia
Factories that once produced watches and shoes lie under a sea of thick, stinking mud. Villagers stand on hastily constructed dams and gaze at the thousands of homes swallowed by brown sludge.
Four months ago, a torrent of hot mud from deep beneath the surface of Indonesia's seismically charged Java island began surging from a natural gas exploration site following a drilling accident.
The "mud volcano" pours out some 165,000 cubic yards of mud every day _ enough to cover a football field about 75 feet deep. Often spewing out in geyser-like eruptions, the mud has left some 665 acres swamped or abandoned as unsafe, forcing more than 10,000 people from their homes.
Experts say the mud volcano is one of the largest ever recorded on land. Geologists fear the technology may not exist to stop the eruption, saying mud could flow for years or even centuries _ or stop on its own at any time.
The mud is believed to come from a reservoir 3 1/2 miles below the surface that has been pressurized by shifts in the crust or by the accumulation of hydrocarbon gases.
The calamity has underscored the patchy safety record of mining companies exploiting the natural resources of this Southeast Asian nation made up of thousands of islands.
Police seized the drilling rig involved in the accident and are investigating whether to bring criminal charges against the principal well owner, PT Lapindo Brantas.
Lapindo, which is linked to the wealthy family of Indonesia's welfare minister, is paying for an ever expanding network of earthen dams to contain the mud, but many people fear the resulting slimy ponds will overflow during the approaching rainy season.
"The volume of mud that is coming out of the hole is not just large, it's enormous," Earl Hunt Jr., an engineer from Woodward, Okla., said while supervising dredging operations.
"We are running out of room up here, period," he said. "If they don't pump it to sea or something soon, then there will be more villages lost."
The government recently gave permission to dump the mud into the sea via a local river. But experts question whether that will get rid of the sludge faster than it gushes from the hole, and environmentalists are opposing the plan as a threat to the marine ecosystem.
The mud, which stands as deep as 16 feet in places, has submerged or washed into houses in four villages. At least 20 factories and many acres of rice fields and prawn farms have been destroyed.
The sludge has repeatedly washed over a major road, closing it for weeks at a time, and now it is threatening a rail line in the industrial area just outside Surabaya, Indonesia's second-largest city.
The mud, which is not toxic, first appeared several days after a blowout deep in Lapindo's well shaft May 29.
Police claim the company mishandled the accident by failing to cap the hole properly, allowing the mud to surge to the surface from several cracks close to the well.
Independent analysts also have said the company's activities were a factor in the torrent.
"This is a natural disaster induced by drilling activity," said Andang Bactiar, a consultant for the oil and gas industry who is working with authorities investigating the case. "Somehow, or somewhere, several mistakes occurred that caused the mud to come from the hole."
The company declined to give its version of what happened or the steps it took to stem the mud, citing possible legal liability. But spokeswoman Yuniwati Teryana said drilling activity had not been proven to be linked to the eruption.
The well is 50 percent owned by Lapindo. Another Indonesian firm, PT Medco E&P Brantas, has a 32 percent stake and Santos Ltd. of Australia holds the remaining 18 percent.
Lapindo has made emergency payments to those who have lost homes and promises to compensate their losses.
But in a country where mistrust of government runs high after decades of dictatorship that ended only in 1998, many people fear the company will try to dodge its responsibilities. The involvement of Welfare Minister Aburizal Bakrie's family in Lapindo has only added to worries.
"We are just poor people, our rights will be torn up as usual," one resident, Sukararji, said as he stood on a dam gazing at mud that reaches the second-floor windows of his house. "We are being stepped on like ants."
After two unsuccessful attempts to stop the flow, Lapindo is digging three shafts alongside the hole, hoping to kill the eruption by pumping in concrete.
Experts are skeptical that will work.
"If they manage to stop it, it will be the first time in the world that it has been done," said geologist Arif Munsyawar.
Four months ago, a torrent of hot mud from deep beneath the surface of Indonesia's seismically charged Java island began surging from a natural gas exploration site following a drilling accident.
The "mud volcano" pours out some 165,000 cubic yards of mud every day _ enough to cover a football field about 75 feet deep. Often spewing out in geyser-like eruptions, the mud has left some 665 acres swamped or abandoned as unsafe, forcing more than 10,000 people from their homes.
Experts say the mud volcano is one of the largest ever recorded on land. Geologists fear the technology may not exist to stop the eruption, saying mud could flow for years or even centuries _ or stop on its own at any time.
The mud is believed to come from a reservoir 3 1/2 miles below the surface that has been pressurized by shifts in the crust or by the accumulation of hydrocarbon gases.
The calamity has underscored the patchy safety record of mining companies exploiting the natural resources of this Southeast Asian nation made up of thousands of islands.
Police seized the drilling rig involved in the accident and are investigating whether to bring criminal charges against the principal well owner, PT Lapindo Brantas.
Lapindo, which is linked to the wealthy family of Indonesia's welfare minister, is paying for an ever expanding network of earthen dams to contain the mud, but many people fear the resulting slimy ponds will overflow during the approaching rainy season.
"The volume of mud that is coming out of the hole is not just large, it's enormous," Earl Hunt Jr., an engineer from Woodward, Okla., said while supervising dredging operations.
"We are running out of room up here, period," he said. "If they don't pump it to sea or something soon, then there will be more villages lost."
The government recently gave permission to dump the mud into the sea via a local river. But experts question whether that will get rid of the sludge faster than it gushes from the hole, and environmentalists are opposing the plan as a threat to the marine ecosystem.
The mud, which stands as deep as 16 feet in places, has submerged or washed into houses in four villages. At least 20 factories and many acres of rice fields and prawn farms have been destroyed.
The sludge has repeatedly washed over a major road, closing it for weeks at a time, and now it is threatening a rail line in the industrial area just outside Surabaya, Indonesia's second-largest city.
The mud, which is not toxic, first appeared several days after a blowout deep in Lapindo's well shaft May 29.
Police claim the company mishandled the accident by failing to cap the hole properly, allowing the mud to surge to the surface from several cracks close to the well.
Independent analysts also have said the company's activities were a factor in the torrent.
"This is a natural disaster induced by drilling activity," said Andang Bactiar, a consultant for the oil and gas industry who is working with authorities investigating the case. "Somehow, or somewhere, several mistakes occurred that caused the mud to come from the hole."
The company declined to give its version of what happened or the steps it took to stem the mud, citing possible legal liability. But spokeswoman Yuniwati Teryana said drilling activity had not been proven to be linked to the eruption.
The well is 50 percent owned by Lapindo. Another Indonesian firm, PT Medco E&P Brantas, has a 32 percent stake and Santos Ltd. of Australia holds the remaining 18 percent.
Lapindo has made emergency payments to those who have lost homes and promises to compensate their losses.
But in a country where mistrust of government runs high after decades of dictatorship that ended only in 1998, many people fear the company will try to dodge its responsibilities. The involvement of Welfare Minister Aburizal Bakrie's family in Lapindo has only added to worries.
"We are just poor people, our rights will be torn up as usual," one resident, Sukararji, said as he stood on a dam gazing at mud that reaches the second-floor windows of his house. "We are being stepped on like ants."
After two unsuccessful attempts to stop the flow, Lapindo is digging three shafts alongside the hole, hoping to kill the eruption by pumping in concrete.
Experts are skeptical that will work.
"If they manage to stop it, it will be the first time in the world that it has been done," said geologist Arif Munsyawar.
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
Ecuadorans try to get their lives back to normal
On a once-lush landscape made wasteland overnight by the Tungurahua volcano, five members of the Meneses family raised picks and hoes in unison to strike at ash-encrusted earth.
The land looks like concrete and is almost as hard. The Meneses returned home to replant their crops, only to find it takes backbreaking work just to crack a furrow in the hardened gray shell.
"I am not giving up," said Antonio Meneses, sprinkling a neat row of corn kernels into one narrow crack. "It's success or death."
Meneses, 52, acknowledged he may not be able to pay back the US$5,000 in loans he took out before the eruption to plant his crops.
"We took a risk planting here," he said. "Now we will test our luck. Let us hope this harvest will not fail."
Trail blazers
The Meneses were among the first to try to resume their lives in Bilbao, a village just below the crater of Tungurahua, which covered the area with incandescent rocks, ash and lava in a catastrophic explosion in August.
Many others are still living elsewhere as refugees.
They are not alone.
All across the volcano-dotted landscape of this Andean nation, millions of people have become accustomed to living in the shadow of mountains that can, with little warning, lay waste to their villages and farms in a matter of hours.
"We have suffered the unspeakable," said Meneses' 26-year-old daughter, Ximena. "But we are not going to leave."
Some 55 volcanos -- 17 of them active -- are strung along Ecuador's northern Andean spine for 300km, known as the "Avenue of the Volcanos."
Volcanic neighbors
More than a quarter of Ecuador's 12 million people live within 25km of an active volcano, making the northern and central Andes one of the most densely populated volcanic zones in the world, said Hugo Yepes, director of the Geophysics Institute in the capital, Quito.
The 5,023m Tungurahua volcano -- which means "throat of fire" in the Quichua Indian language -- is one of nearly a dozen volcanos under constant watch because of their proximity to villages, towns and cities.
Its eruption in mid-August killed four people, destroyed 10 villages and severely damaged many others, leaving 5,000 homeless. Tens of thousands of hectares of pasture and crops were wiped out.
While living on the slopes of Tungurahua may seem foolhardy, some people make their homes inside the craters of the killer mountains.
Braving the daily threat of gas outbursts and temperatures that regularly rise into the high 40s Celcius, residents eke out a living with subsistence agriculture.
The land looks like concrete and is almost as hard. The Meneses returned home to replant their crops, only to find it takes backbreaking work just to crack a furrow in the hardened gray shell.
"I am not giving up," said Antonio Meneses, sprinkling a neat row of corn kernels into one narrow crack. "It's success or death."
Meneses, 52, acknowledged he may not be able to pay back the US$5,000 in loans he took out before the eruption to plant his crops.
"We took a risk planting here," he said. "Now we will test our luck. Let us hope this harvest will not fail."
Trail blazers
The Meneses were among the first to try to resume their lives in Bilbao, a village just below the crater of Tungurahua, which covered the area with incandescent rocks, ash and lava in a catastrophic explosion in August.
Many others are still living elsewhere as refugees.
They are not alone.
All across the volcano-dotted landscape of this Andean nation, millions of people have become accustomed to living in the shadow of mountains that can, with little warning, lay waste to their villages and farms in a matter of hours.
"We have suffered the unspeakable," said Meneses' 26-year-old daughter, Ximena. "But we are not going to leave."
Some 55 volcanos -- 17 of them active -- are strung along Ecuador's northern Andean spine for 300km, known as the "Avenue of the Volcanos."
Volcanic neighbors
More than a quarter of Ecuador's 12 million people live within 25km of an active volcano, making the northern and central Andes one of the most densely populated volcanic zones in the world, said Hugo Yepes, director of the Geophysics Institute in the capital, Quito.
The 5,023m Tungurahua volcano -- which means "throat of fire" in the Quichua Indian language -- is one of nearly a dozen volcanos under constant watch because of their proximity to villages, towns and cities.
Its eruption in mid-August killed four people, destroyed 10 villages and severely damaged many others, leaving 5,000 homeless. Tens of thousands of hectares of pasture and crops were wiped out.
While living on the slopes of Tungurahua may seem foolhardy, some people make their homes inside the craters of the killer mountains.
Braving the daily threat of gas outbursts and temperatures that regularly rise into the high 40s Celcius, residents eke out a living with subsistence agriculture.
Mount St.Helens' eruption seems to calm down
Two years after Mount St. Helens began its low-key eruption, a process that has extruded tons of rock into the crater left by the volcano's deadly 1980 blast, scientists say the mountain seems to be slowing down. But they're making no predictions about when the activity will end.
"Volcanoes throw you a lot of curve balls. I've been humbled enough not to call the pitch till it's over the plate," said Cynthia Gardner, scientist in charge at the Cascades Volcano Observatory, a U.S. Geological Survey facility about 50 miles from Vancouver, Wash., and 150 miles south of Seattle. The southwest Washington mountain is going through another "dome-building" phase within its crater.
The volcano's May 18, 1980, eruption killed 57 people, sent superheated mud down the Toutle River Valley, flattened forests for miles and spewed ash across the state and, eventually, around the globe. It also reduced the 9,677-foot mountain to 8,363 feet, and replaced its symmetrical, snow-covered cone with a gaping crater. The blast was followed by a period of dome building that ended in 1986. The current flow of magma began in October 2004 after weeks of low-level seismic activity. For the first year it averaged more than 3 cubic yards, about two big pickup truck loads, per second, Gardner said.
The extruded rock has been piling up brittle new structures, which then collapse onto the crater floor and form the foundation for the next gush of lava. Since October 2005, the extrusion rate has slowed to less than 1.3 cubic yards per second, Gardner said. Since April, "we're in the half-cubic-yard range," she said. But confirming a trend "takes a long time, because a lot of these are very small changes," she said. Seismic readings, which had ranged above magnitude 3, have also dropped over the past year, Gardner said.
The rate of deformation - the swelling or shrinking of the volcano's flanks - also has slowed, but in very small amounts, she said. "We're not seeing anything ... that tells us we're in store for a change in eruptive style in the near future," she said. "Right now it looks like we'll be continuing with fairly benign rock extrusion and rockfalls that can send ash over the crater rim." There's no telling when, or if, the activity could ratchet up again. "A lull's OK, as long as it's not another 18 years. I don't have that much time left in my career," Gardner said. The current eruptive phase followed 18 years of silence.
A drumfire of seismic rumblings began on Sept. 23, 2004. A plume of ash and steam on Oct. 1, 2004, confirmed that an eruption was under way. Magma appeared in the crater 10 days later. The Johnston Ridge Observatory about five miles from the peak was closed Oct, 2, 2004, due to safety concerns. It reopened the following May 6. This summer, a hiking trail to the edge of the crater was reopened by the U.S. Forest Service. "This is a great opportunity. I think people need to understand that this is so rare, that you can actually go up and see something like this - even for scientists," Gardner said.
Mount St. Helens, the youngest and most active of the Cascade Range volcanos, has a history of leveling and rebuilding itself. Scientists say the mountain that stood before 1980 was just 4,000 years old - the blink of an eye in geologic time. There had been eruptions in the St. Helens area for hundreds of thousands of years, but for centuries they only produced small lava domes.
"Volcanoes throw you a lot of curve balls. I've been humbled enough not to call the pitch till it's over the plate," said Cynthia Gardner, scientist in charge at the Cascades Volcano Observatory, a U.S. Geological Survey facility about 50 miles from Vancouver, Wash., and 150 miles south of Seattle. The southwest Washington mountain is going through another "dome-building" phase within its crater.
The volcano's May 18, 1980, eruption killed 57 people, sent superheated mud down the Toutle River Valley, flattened forests for miles and spewed ash across the state and, eventually, around the globe. It also reduced the 9,677-foot mountain to 8,363 feet, and replaced its symmetrical, snow-covered cone with a gaping crater. The blast was followed by a period of dome building that ended in 1986. The current flow of magma began in October 2004 after weeks of low-level seismic activity. For the first year it averaged more than 3 cubic yards, about two big pickup truck loads, per second, Gardner said.
The extruded rock has been piling up brittle new structures, which then collapse onto the crater floor and form the foundation for the next gush of lava. Since October 2005, the extrusion rate has slowed to less than 1.3 cubic yards per second, Gardner said. Since April, "we're in the half-cubic-yard range," she said. But confirming a trend "takes a long time, because a lot of these are very small changes," she said. Seismic readings, which had ranged above magnitude 3, have also dropped over the past year, Gardner said.
The rate of deformation - the swelling or shrinking of the volcano's flanks - also has slowed, but in very small amounts, she said. "We're not seeing anything ... that tells us we're in store for a change in eruptive style in the near future," she said. "Right now it looks like we'll be continuing with fairly benign rock extrusion and rockfalls that can send ash over the crater rim." There's no telling when, or if, the activity could ratchet up again. "A lull's OK, as long as it's not another 18 years. I don't have that much time left in my career," Gardner said. The current eruptive phase followed 18 years of silence.
A drumfire of seismic rumblings began on Sept. 23, 2004. A plume of ash and steam on Oct. 1, 2004, confirmed that an eruption was under way. Magma appeared in the crater 10 days later. The Johnston Ridge Observatory about five miles from the peak was closed Oct, 2, 2004, due to safety concerns. It reopened the following May 6. This summer, a hiking trail to the edge of the crater was reopened by the U.S. Forest Service. "This is a great opportunity. I think people need to understand that this is so rare, that you can actually go up and see something like this - even for scientists," Gardner said.
Mount St. Helens, the youngest and most active of the Cascade Range volcanos, has a history of leveling and rebuilding itself. Scientists say the mountain that stood before 1980 was just 4,000 years old - the blink of an eye in geologic time. There had been eruptions in the St. Helens area for hundreds of thousands of years, but for centuries they only produced small lava domes.
