There are about 1,350 potentially active volcanoes in the world, not including those on the ocean floor, such as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, according to National Geographic. It should be noted that approximately 500 of them are known to have erupted at least once over time. Indonesia has the most active volcanoes with 58, followed by Japan and the United States of America (USA) with 44 and 42 active volcanoes respectively in the last 60 years.
A volcano can be “awakened” by a strong earthquake. For example, in September this year in Italy, in the Naples area, in the active volcanic area called “Campi Flegrei” or Flegrei Fields (Greek for “Burning Fields”), several earthquakes occurred. It’s also home to Europe’s so-called “supervolcano,” which researchers are calling the next possible Vesuvius. It should be noted that the most recent eruption of Campi Flegrei took place almost 500 years ago – in 1538.
To study the sleeping giants, scientists are ready to risk their lives to go to remote regions of the world. For example, the 33-year-old researcher Dr. A team led by Emma Nicholson from Great Britain climbed to the top of the active volcano Mount Michael on Sanders Island in the South Atlantic Ocean to see what was happening there with their own eyes and collect samples for research.
The “Explorer: Lake of Fire” program of the “National Geographic” channel will tell about the scientists’ extreme expedition, which will premiere on October 29, at 22.00 While waiting for the program, the “National Geographic” channel invites you to remember the stories of the “awakening” of sleeping giants both in Europe and elsewhere in the world!
Hawaii: Life on a Volcano
In September of this year, the Kīlauea volcano erupted in Hawaii. It was already the third eruption of this volcano in the last two months. The US giant has now become the world’s most active volcano, spewing lava at a height of 24 meters.
The eruption emits volcanic particles as well as gases that can cause breathing problems for people living in the surrounding areas, but in this case the lives of the residents were not in danger and evacuation was not necessary.
This volcano is the second largest in Hawaii and erupts fairly frequently. The most devastating Kīlauea eruption was recorded five years ago. Namely, in 2018, more than 700 houses were destroyed and several thousand inhabitants were left homeless.
At the end of 2022, for the first time in 40 years, the eruption of the world’s largest active volcano, Maunaloa, took place in Hawaii. According to the US Geological Survey, Maunaloa has erupted 33 times since 1843.
The previous eruption was recorded in 1984, but this did not stop people from settling in this area of their own free will. Since the 80s of the 20th century, the population there has almost doubled and currently around 200,000 people live near the volcano.
Canary Islands: Born in Fire
The Canary Islands are an archipelago of seven large and six small islands of volcanic origin in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. It is said about these islands that they were born in fire.
From September 19 to December 25, 2021, the whole of Europe followed the news about the eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano on the island of Palma, where 83 thousand people live. It should be noted that this volcano had been “silent” for 50 years – the last time it erupted was in 1971.
Fortunately, the active activity of the volcano for almost three months did not claim human lives. About 7,000 local residents and 500 tourists were evacuated after it began, and more than 3,000 buildings were destroyed as lava covered 1,000 hectares of land. It is estimated that the material damages caused can be measured in the amount of approximately one billion euros.
Meanwhile, a local politician offered to stop the Cumbre Vieja eruption by throwing a bomb into the volcano. This idea was ridiculed by many, however, there has been a case in the world when such an offer has also been implemented. Namely, in 1935, the US Army tried to redirect the lava flows of the Maunaloa volcano in Hawaii with bombs. A week after the blast, the lava flow really stopped.
This allowed the US military to announce that the mission had been successful. It should be noted that many experts were skeptical because they believed that the lava flow ended by itself and that this process simply coincided with the time of the explosion.
Italy’s supervolcano: an eruption that can affect the climate on the planet
Thousands of small earthquakes have been felt in the Naples region since 2019. Researchers are concerned that both the frequency and intensity of earthquakes have increased in the “Campi Flegrei” region this year. It is possible that this seismic activity indicates that a subsurface volcano is about to erupt in the near future.
It should be noted that the last time such theories were voiced more than 40 years ago – in the early 1980s. At that time, the region also experienced an increase in similar earthquakes, but fortunately this did not cause a volcanic eruption.
Italy’s civil protection department has warned that seismic activity is now more dangerous than a potential volcanic eruption and that more earthquakes could follow.
If the supervolcano eruption in the Campi Flegrei region is strong enough, it could affect global temperatures and climate, potentially leading to much colder winters in the Northern Hemisphere.
Mount Michael: The Mysterious Giant of the Atlantic Ocean
The 843 meter high Mount Michael is a mysterious active volcano that forms Sanders Island in the South Sandwich Islands archipelago. The closest “neighbor” of this island – the Falkland Islands – is almost 2000 kilometers away. It’s no wonder that only a handful of people have ever made it to this remote location in the South Atlantic.
This island was discovered in 1775 by the expedition of the famous British navigator James Cook. It was named after the British admiral Charles Saunders (Charles Saunders). It is true that in 1908 the Norwegian polar explorer Karl Anton Larsen first disembarked on its shores.
Eruptions and other activity at Mount Michael volcano have been reported periodically since 1819, with the last eruption recorded in October 2012. However, in 2019, with the help of satellite companies, it was discovered that there is a persistent lava lake on Mount Michael, which is a rare phenomenon. It is found in only eight of the 1350 active volcanoes. Before Dr. The expedition led by Emma Nicholson had never before reached the summit of Mount Michael.
Scientists have managed to confirm the existence of a lava lake in the crater of Mount Michael volcano. They have now successfully returned home and are analyzing the data to better understand volcanoes and their environmental impact.
About the mysterious Mount Michael volcano and Dr. Viewers will be able to find out about Emma Nicholson’s expedition starting on October 29 at 22.00 in the program “Explorer: Lake of Fire” on the channel “National Geographic”!
2023-10-29 07:05:29
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