General Volcanic Activity Thread!

[john pike]

 

fascinating to watch

[john pike]

A volcano has erupted in Guatemala, prompting the authorities to consider the evacuation of some 3,000 people living in the area. The Pacaya volcano began spewing ash and lava after a powerful explosion on Saturday afternoon. New explosions were seen on Sunday, with ash clouds reaching a height or at least 4km (3 miles). Flights have been diverted from the area, some 50km (30 miles) south of the capital, Guatemala City. The Pacaya is one of three active volcanoes in the Central American nation. The other two are the Fuego and the Santa Maria. "We are assessing with the National Disaster Management Centre (Conred) whether we will need to evacuate the 3,000 people who live in the villages of El Rodeo and Patrocinio," said the Pacaya National Park director, Humberto Morales. "Access to the areas around the volcano has been suspended," he told the Prensa Libre newspaper. The Guatemalan authorities have issued an amber alert, the third highest. It means people must remain alert and be prepared to leave the area at short notice.

 

http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/site/?pageid=event_desc&edis_id=VE-20140302-42879-GTM

[john pike]

Volcano news: Pacaya (Guatemala) Pacaya volcano (Guatemala), eruption update - new paroxysm continues

Monday Mar 03, 2014 11:52 AM | BY: T

Landsat image of the ash plume and lava flow of Pacaya's eruption yesterday (Source: @rudigerescobar / Twitter)

The ash plume, about 120 km long, from Pacaya yesterday (Source: @rudigerescobar / Twitter)

Pacaya's ash plume yesterday seen from the NE (Image: @MrVop / pic.twitter.com/zzhrQu0gkU)

The lava flow yesterday (CONRED / facebook)

Decreased explosive activity from the summit yesterday (CONRED / facebook)

The latest eruptive phase of the volcano continues at decreased strength. The second paroxysm of Pacaya this year, only about 6 weeks after the previous one in January, started yesterday morning with lava fountains, associated ash emissions, as well as a new lava flow that quickly reached about 2 km length.

The current seismic signal suggests that activity continues at a decreasing trend. Images from later during yesterday showed that lava fountaining and lava effusion had already decreased significantly after the first hours.

According to local news, a first increase in explosive activity at the summit vent of the Mackenney crater occurred already on the evening of 1 March at 17:00 local time, followed by a loud explosion at 05h15 the next morning, which opened a new vent between the old cone of Cerro Chino and the Mackenney crater. A lava flow began to issue from this new vent and satellite images about 5 hours later showed that it reached about 1 km length to the NW in that time.

A video on facebook shows lava fountains from the summit vent. An ash plume, well visible from Guatemala city and on satellite imagery, rose about 2 km above the volcano and drifted more than 100 km to the west-southwest. Light ash fall occurred in areas such as Escuintla (22 km to the SW).

Authorities are evaluating the need to evacuate residents near the villages El Patrocinio and El Rodeo on the SW foot of Pacaya. CONRED raised the civil alert level for the area to yellow

[john pike]

Volcanoes Today, 4 Mar 2014: Pacaya, Ubinas, Nishino-shima, Kilauea

Tuesday Mar 04, 2014 14:03 PM |

Part of Nishino-shima island with active flows on the southern shore, forming new bays and a small lake that once was a bay (Japan Coast guard)

Landsat image of the ash plume and lava flow of Pacaya's eruption yesterday (Source: @rudigerescobar / Twitter)

Seismic signal from Pacaya today (PCG station, INSIVUMEH)

This morning's seismic signal from Pacaya (PCG station, INSIVUMEH)

MODIS hot spot at Ubinas volcano (ModVolc, Univ. Hawaii)

Nishino-shima (Volcano Islands): The island continues to grow as lava flows slowly spread into several directions. This is shown nicely by the latest aerial survey pictures the Japanese Coast guard took on 28 Feb. The most active flow fronts are currently at the southern shore while advance on the northern and eastern margins of the flow field has slowed down.
Two prominent cones have formed around the main vents, the smaller and younger of which still has strombolian activity as well, judging from the available photos.

One can note the closure of a small bay that had been formed in early Feb by lava flow tongues; eventually, the two flows touched and separated the bay from open water, turning it into a small lake. Several other small bays present now (or, on 28 Feb, at least) are in the process of forming and probably become lakes as well in the future. The discoloration of the enclosed water comes from dissolved gasses and fine material in suspension. The fate of these lakes will depend on the evolution of the lava flows. If new flows cover them, they might well disappear as well.

 

 

Kilauea (Hawai'i): (3 Mar) Summit tiltmeters record weak inflationary tilt, the lava-lake level dropped slightly to around 39m (128ft) below the floor of Halema`uma`u

Pacaya (Guatemala): (3 Mar) The latest eruptive phase of the volcano continues at decreased strength. The second paroxysm of Pacaya this year, only about 6 weeks after the previous one in January, started yesterday morning with lava fountains, associated ash emissions, as well as a new lava flow that quickly reached about 2 km length.
The current seismic signal suggests that activity continues at a decreasing trend. Images from later during yesterday showed that lava fountaining and lava effusion had already decreased significantly after the first hours.
According to local news, a first increase in explosive activity at the summit vent of the Mackenney crater occurred already on the evening of 1 March at 17:00 local time, followed by a loud explosion at 05h15 the next morning, which opened a new vent between the old cone of Cerro Chino and the Mackenney crater. A lava flow began to issue from this new vent and satellite images about 5 hours later showed that it reached about 1 km length to the NW in that time.
...2 Mar:
A new phase of increased activity at the volcano began today. Strombolian explosions became more intense, ejecting incandescent bombs to approx. 200 m above the crater, and since this morning, a new lava flow started to descend from the summit on the western flank. The activity surge is reflected by a strong, gradual increase of tremor.
...4 Mar:
Eruptive activity continues at reduced intensity as the seismic signal indicates. As of yesterday, INSIVUMEH reported still active flows from the vent at the western base of the Mackenney cone. Their length was between 1300-1600 m and they reached the southern base of the cone. Weak explosions were observed at the summit vent.

Ubinas (Peru): According to the Geophysical Institute of Peru (IGP), magma has arrived near or at the crater of the volcano. This is indicated by a recent swarm of hybrid earthquakes and a weak thermal anomaly that has been detected at the summit during the past 3 weeks.
In a press article, the head of IGP, Orlando Macedo, said that that based on the low energy of the seismic signals recorded, the quantity of new magma that has risen is estimated to be small and that the most likely scenario for the near to medium future are smaller (explosive) eruptions from the volcano.

Edited March 4, 2014 by john pike

[blitzen]

An interesting read? Apologies if already posted: (need to translate though)

http://piccolaeraglaciale.wordpress.com/2014/03/01/dettagli-inquietanti-dalla-caldera-dello-yellowstone/

Edited March 4, 2014 by Blitzen

[john pike]

http://volcanodiscovery.com/askja-earthquakes.html

 

Askja volcano

Stratovolcano 1516 m (4,974 ft), Central Iceland, 65.03°N / -16.75°W

 

 

quite a lot of earthquakes there at present

 

maybe worth keeping an eye on

Edited March 5, 2014 by john pike

[john pike]

Volcanoes Today, 5 Mar 2014: Santa María / Santiaguito, Pacaya, Popocatépetl, Tungurahua, Kilauea

Wednesday Mar 05, 2014 20:03 PM |

SO2 plume from Popocatépetl yesterday (NOAA)

Santiaguito's lava dome on 3 March

Current seismic signal from Pacaya (PCG station, INSIVUMEH)

Kilauea (Hawai'i): (4 Mar) Kilauea summit tiltmeters recorded the start of another DI deflationary tilt at 3:30 am this morning - lava lake at summit drops 3m (6ft)

Popocatépetl (Central Mexico): Activity at the volcano remains low and mainly characterized by intense, continuous degassing. Bright glow is visible above the crater at night. No explosions occurred during the past 24 hours.

Santa María / Santiaguito (Guatemala): Activity remains dominantly effusive. Viscous lava flows are active mainly at the S and NE flanks of the dome, causing constant avalanches.

Pacaya (Guatemala): While lava flow effusions probably has stopped, weak and sometimes moderate strombolian explosions continue at the summit vent, producing small ash plumes rising 100-150 m.

Tungurahua (Ecuador): Activity has decreased at the volcano. IGPEN characterizes it still as moderate, but there have been no new significant explosions.

[john pike]

Volcanic activity worldwide 6 Mar 2014: Kilauea

Thursday Mar 06, 2014 22:03 PM |

 

Update Thu 06 Mar 23:28

The summit tiltmeter at Kilauea recorded a switch to DI inflationary tilt and the summit lava-lake rose several meters last night!

 

Kilauea (Hawai'i): (5 Mar) Kilauea summit tiltmeters recorded continuing DI deflationary tilt, 2 microradians in the past 24 hrs - a fairly large deflation!

 

http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/hawaii/kilauea/current-activity.html

[john pike]

Ubinas volcano (Peru): new lava observed in crater, possible eruption today

Friday Mar 07, 2014 17:08 PM | BY: T

The new lava inside the crater of Ubinas volcano (photo: IGP)

A pilot reported a possible ash plume at flight level 290 (29,000 ft, 9 km altitude) this afternoon, which would mean a significant eruption took place. However, this needs to be confirmed yet.

IGP in its latest press release confirmed the presence of new magma in the crater. This correlates well with the detected hybrid earthquakes and bluish gas emissions, as well as the thermal hot spot visible on satellite data since mid February.

The new lava forms a flat elongated dome about 30-40 meters long.

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/ubinas/news/43077/Ubinas-volcano-Peru-new-lava-observed-in-crater-possible-eruption-today.html

[john pike]

Sakurajima volcano news

latest (2014) | Sep-Dec 2013 | Jun-Aug 2013 | archive

Friday, Mar 07, 2014

Sakurajima volcano (Kyushu, Japan) activity update

Explosions have been becoming more frequent again. During the past 48 hours, VAAC Tokyo counted 8 eruptions of small to moderate size (ash plumes rising up to between 5-9,000 ft altitude).

Popocatepetl volcano news & eruption update

latest (2014) | Sep-Dec 2013 | Jul-Aug 2013 | archive

Friday, Mar 07, 2014

Popocatépetl volcano (Central Mexico) activity update

Small explosion at Popocatépetl yesterday morning (CENAPRED)

A small explosion occurred yesterday morning, ejecting glowing material to up to 600 m distance from the crater. Otherwise, the activity at the volcano has been low, similar to previous weeks. CENAPRED counted 14 low-intensity emissions yesterday.

[john pike]

Volcanoes Today, 8 Mar 2014: Etna, Tungurahua

Saturday Mar 08, 2014 10:03 AM |

Thermal image of the eastern side of Etna with the active effusive vent at the base of the NSEC

Tungurahua volcano last evening

Etna (Sicily, Italy): Weak lava effusion from the vent at the eastern base of the New SE crater, as well as sporadic small explosions from its summit crater continue with no significant variations over the past days.

Tungurahua (Ecuador): The volcano could be entering another eruptive phase in the near future, the latest report of IGPEN suggests. After a relatively calm week, a number of small to moderate explosions occurred again during 5-6 March.

The first eruption was around 23:56 (local time) on 5 March. A small explosion was felt in areas near the volcano, followed by a slightly stronger one at 00:40 on 6 March, heard as a gunshot noise in nearby areas such as Pondoa and Bilbao, as well at IGPEN's volcano observatory. Direct observations could not be made because of cloud cover. When weather cleared in the morning, pulses of steam emissions with low ash content could be noted.

The explosions during the night had caused some ash fall of gray and black color in between the sectors of El Manzano and Palictahua (Penipe).

A 3rd explosion occurred at 10:20, forming a column with moderate ash content reaching 2 km above the summit that drifted NE and produced light ash fall for one hour.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/volcanoes/today.html

[john pike]

Akyarlar volcano
lava domes 172 m, Turkey, 36.98°N / 27.31°E

 

 

http://volcanodiscovery.com/akyarlar-earthquakes.html

 

quite a lot of activity there at present

 

http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/akyarlar.html

 

info above on volcano

[john pike]

Volcanoes Today, 10 Mar 2014: Pacaya, Fuego, Popocatépetl, San Miguel

Monday Mar 10, 2014 12:03 PM |

A small steam emission from Popocatépetl yesterday

Lava flow on Fuego's upper southern flank this night

Tremor amplitude at San Miguel volcano over the past weeks (MARN)

Popocatépetl (Central Mexico): Activity has been low with less than 1 emission per day and no recent explosions.
Today's seismogram shows the magnitude 6.3 earthquake in southern Mexico early this morning.

Pacaya (Guatemala): According to INSIVUMEH, lava continues to flow from the vent (on the western base of the cone?), but is mostly inside small lava tubes. Strombolian activity at the summit vent seems to have decreased or ceased.

Fuego (Guatemala): A small lava flow continues to be active on the upper SE slope of the volcano. Explosions have been a bit weaker on average, with incandescent lava ejected to 150 m and ash plumes reaching 500-800 m above the summit.

San Miguel (El Salvador): NO significant changes in activity have been noted. Seismic activity remains elevated, but at stable levels lower than during the second half of February.

 

 

http://webcams.volcanodiscovery.com/Kilauea

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mount Merapi erupted on Monday morning, causing a thick-pyroclastic surge to shoot 1,500 meters up in the air. "The eruption took place at around 6:54 a.m. and the ash spread up to 7 kilometers from the volcano's crater," Subandriyo, the head of the Geological Disaster Technology Research and Development Center (BPPTKG) in Yogyakarta. The most severely-affected areas were in Kemalang and Balerante Klaten regency, scores of villages in Magelang, all in Central Java; as well Yogyakarta. "The volcanic ash fell to a depth of 1 millimeters," he said. Subandriyo explained that the eruption may have been sparked by a tectonic earthquake, which measured 5.4 on the Richter scale and occurred around 115 kilometers southeast of Malang regency, East Java, on Sunday evening. He further said that the discharge of volcanic ashes constituted a regular phenomenon after major eruption of Mt. Merapi in 2010 and not a sign of escalation of activities of the mount. Therefore, he asked the residents who lived in nearby villages to remain calm. Separately, Sukiman, a resident of Deles district, which is located within a radius of 7 kilometers from the peak, said: "The ash fell on my village for around half an hour. The villagers hit kentongan (bamboo drums) to warn others of the danger. Residents rushed out of their houses and gathered along the street to see what was happening." Sukiman also explained that many villagers were preparing to evacuate.

 

http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/site/?pageid=event_desc&edis_id=VA-20140310-42967-IDN

Edited March 10, 2014 by john pike

[john pike]

Etna volcano update: Small ash emissions from Bocca Nuova

Monday Mar 10, 2014 19:05 PM | BY: T

Thermal image of the summit craters with ash emissions from Bocca Nuova (left)

While weak lava effusion and sporadic strombolian explosions from the New SE crater continue with little changes, the Bocca Nuova crater has started to produce occasional small ash emissions of sometimes elevated temperature (suggesting presence of magma near the surface).

[*]All news about: Etna volcano

[*]Information about: Etna volcano

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/etna/news/43126/Etna-volcano-update-Small-ash-emissions-from-Bocca-Nuova.html

[john pike]

http://www.avo.alaska.edu/

 

Click for higher resolution image.

Cleveland volcano:
Aviation Color Code - YELLOW
Volcano Alert Level - ADVISORY
Full details ...

Click for higher resolution image.

Shishaldin volcano:
Aviation Color Code - YELLOW
Volcano Alert Level - ADVISORY
Full details ...

Click for higher resolution image.

Veniaminof volcano:
Aviation Color Code - YELLOW
Volcano Alert Level - ADVISORY
Full details ...

 

Loss of Critical Volcano Monitoring Information in Alaska

 

http://www.avo.alaska.edu/news.php?id=841

 

 

[john pike]

KILAUEA VOLCANO (CAVW #332010)
19°25'16" N 155°17'13" W, Summit Elevation 4091 ft (1247 m)
Current Volcano Alert Level: WATCH
Current Aviation Color Code: ORANGE

Activity Summary: The eruption continued at the summit and within the east rift zone. The summit tiltmeter network recorded minor fluctations and the summit lava-lake level was fairly stable. At the middle east rift zone, the Pu`u `O`o vent continued feeding the Kahauale`a 2 lava flow whose distal end remained active and burning forest to the northeast but had not advanced substantially for several months. Gas emissions remained elevated.

Recent Observations at Kilauea summit: The summit tiltmeters recorded minor fluctuations and the lava-lake level remained at 41-43 m (134-141 ft) below the floor of Halema`uma`u crater. Gas emissions continued to be elevated: during the week of 01/01-01/07, the summit SO2 emission rate varied between 3,300 and 5,800 tonnes/day (see caveat below); however, no reliable emission rate measurements could be made over the past several months due to the persistent absence of moderate trade-winds except for a few brief periods during which the emission rates were measured at values within the range of 1,000 to 6,000 t/d (representing conditions of no spattering to spattering lake conditions). A small amount of ash-sized tephra (mostly fresh spatter bits and Pele's hair from the circulating lava lake) was carried out of the vent within the gas plume and deposited onto nearby surfaces.

Seismic tremor levels were low with no dropouts. Thirty-nine earthquakes were strong enough to be located beneath Kilauea Volcano in the past 24 hours: 3 beneath the summit caldera, 24 within the upper east rift zone (including a magnitude-3.5 quake yesterday; cluster centered beneath Ko`oko`olau crater), and 12 scattered on the south flank faults. GPS receivers spanning the summit caldera recorded changes mimicking the recent tilt changes after recording about 3 cm of extension since early December, 2013; the long-term, cross-caldera measurements indicate continued extension at a rate averaging 10 cm/yr (4 in/yr) since March, 2010.

 

http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/activity/status.php

 

more above in link

[john pike]

http://www.ecanadanow.com/science/2014/03/10/yellowstone-supervolcano-2-5x-larger-than-previously-thought/

 

interesting read

[john pike]

Volcanoes Today, 11 Mar 2014: Colima, Slamet, Kilauea

Tuesday Mar 11, 2014 12:03 PM |

Aerial view of Colima volcano on 7 March, showing the viscous lava dome at the summit (photo: Proteccion Civil Jalisco Uepcbj / facebook)

Slamet (Central Java): New eruptions were observed at Java's second highest volcano since yesterday evening. A series of explosions produced ash plumes rising 800-1000 m above the summit, the local observatory reported.

This activity came after a steep increase in volcanic earthquakes from averages of approx 50 to more than 200 per day, volcanologist Mr Sudrajat from the local observatory told the press.

.

The first explosion occurred Monday evening at 20:06, causing the glass windows of the observatory building to vibrate. Shortly after, the Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) raised the status of Mount Slamet from normal to alert (2 on a scale of 1-4).

According to local press, the vibration from the eruption could be felt in up to 10 km distance and described the plume as "thick smoke".

Kilauea (Hawai'i): (10 Mar) The NE spatter cone complex continued to feed the Kahauale`a 2 lava flow 8km (5mi) NE of Pu`u `O`o, the farthest advance since January 2014!

Volcano news: Colima Volcano (Mexico) Colima volcano (Western Mexico) activity update: extrusion of lava flow from summit, intermittent explosions

Tuesday Mar 11, 2014 11:27 AM | BY: T

Aerial view of Colima volcano on 7 March, showing the viscous lava dome at the summit (photo: Proteccion Civil Jalisco Uepcbj / facebook)

Mild effusive and explosive activity continue at the volcano. A recent overflight made by the Civil Protection's fire fighting department of Jalisco (UEPCBJ) showed no significant changes in the summit area of the volcano. A flat mass of viscous lava is slowly extruding and overspilling on the western and southern sides of the upper cone, causing incandescent avalanches sometimes visible at night. Intermittent explosions with ash emission also continue to occur.

[*]All news about: Colima volcano

[*]Information about: Colima volcano

[Tom Jarvis]

Cool video here

[john pike]

Volcanoes Today, 12 Mar 2014: Chirpoi, Karymsky, Dukono, Copahue

Wednesday Mar 12, 2014 18:03 PM |

MODIS hot spot at Chirpoi volcano (ModVolc, Univ. Hawaii)

Karymsky (Kamchatka): An ash plume to 7,000 ft (2.1 km) altitude and extending SW was reported early this morning (VAAC Tokyo).

This came likely from a stronger-than-average of the volcano's typical sporadic strombolian explosions.

Chirpoi (Kurile Islands, Russia): A thermal hot spot is again visible on MODIS satellite data, suggesting some sort of activity going on at the remote volcano. What exactly is happening there (perhaps the appearance of a small lava dome, or emissions of hot gasses) is unknown at the moment.

Dukono (Halmahera): Explosive activity at the volcano produced an ash plume that rose to 7,000 ft (2.1 km) altitude and extended 40 nautical miles to the SE yesterday.

Copahue (Chile/Argentina): The volcano continues to show signs of unrest. A swarm of volcanic-tectonic earthquakes occurred the day before yesterday. SERNAGEOMIN keeps the alert level of the volcano at Yellow.

[john pike]

http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/

 

lots of info re hawaii volcanoes and videos too

[john pike]

[john pike]

http://www.eh-resources.org/volcanoes.html

 

interesting read

[Snowangel-MK]

Apologies if this video has already been posted but I thought this was brilliant 

 

Drone Flies into an Active Volcano…

 

 

This unique footage is only possible because of recent advances in drone technology. A manned helicopter could never get this close to an active volcano, with lava pouring out of vents at temperatures up to 2,192°F (1,200°C).

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-shWVW1UBc#t=64

 

 

http://www.dronehire.org/blog/drone-flies-into-an-active-volcano

Edited March 13, 2014 by MKsnowangel

[john pike]

KILAUEA VOLCANO (CAVW #332010)
19°25'16" N 155°17'13" W, Summit Elevation 4091 ft (1247 m)
Current Volcano Alert Level: WATCH
Current Aviation Color Code: ORANGE

Activity Summary: The eruption continued at the summit and within the east rift zone. The summit tiltmeter network recorded minor fluctuations and the summit lava-lake level remained stable. At the middle east rift zone, the Pu`u `O`o vent continued feeding the Kahauale`a 2 lava flow whose distal end remained active and advancing very slowly while burning forest to the northeast. Gas emissions remained elevated.

Recent Observations at Kilauea summit: The summit tiltmeters recorded minor fluctuations and the lava-lake level remained at an estimated 40-41 m (131-135 ft) below the floor of Halema`uma`u crater. Gas emissions continued to be elevated: during the week of 01/01-01/07, the summit SO2 emission rate varied between 3,300 and 5,800 tonnes/day (see caveat below); however, no reliable emission rate measurements could be made over the past several months due to the persistent absence of moderate trade-winds except for a few brief periods during which the emission rates were measured at values within the range of 1,000 to 6,000 t/d (representing conditions of no spattering to spattering lake conditions). A moderate amount of ash-sized tephra (mostly fresh spatter bits and Pele's hair from the circulating lava lake) was carried out of the vent within the gas plume and deposited onto nearby surfaces.

 

http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/activity/kilaueastatus.php

 

full details in link above