A volcanic crater appears under Santorini Island, feared to trigger a major eruption

ATHENA – Discovery of volcanic magma chambers or craters below volcano under the sea of ​​​​Columbo, the Mediterranean Sea, surprised the researchers. Moreover, the eruption of Mount Columbo once destroyed the island of Santorini Greece that was beautiful almost 400 years ago.

This volcanic magma chamber is located about 4 miles or 7 kilometers from Santorini and at a depth of 1,640 feet or 500 meters below sea level. In this location is the Colombo volcano, one of the most active underwater volcanoes in the world.

According to historical records, the last eruption occurred in 1650 AD killing at least 70 people. It is feared that the discovery of a chamber of volcanic magma growing under the Colombo volcano could cause another eruption, thereby endangering residents and tourists on Santorini.

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This volcanic magma chamber has never been detected before and was only discovered by researchers published in the journal Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems on October 22, 2022. This volcanic magma chamber was detected using a seismic wave technique like other mountains on the earth’s surface.

To study the internal mechanics of the Colombo volcano scientists use a method called full waveform inversion. This technique uses artificially produced seismic waves to create high-resolution images that show how stiff or soft underground rock is.

“Full waveform inversion is similar to medical ultrasound. It uses sound waves to create images of the volcano’s underground structure,” said Michele Paulatto, a volcanologist at Imperial College London quoted from the Live Science page, Monday (1/16/2023).

While on a research cruise ship sailing near a volcano, the scientists fired a shotgun that generated seismic waves in the ground below. The seismic waves are measured by monitors on the ocean floor.

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The data from the seismic record shows a significant decrease in velocity beneath the volcano, indicating a magma chamber, not just solid rock. Further calculations revealed that the magma chamber had been growing at a rate of 141 million cubic feet or 4 million cubic meters per year since the eruption of Mount Colombo in 1650.