Saturday, February 19, 2011

Mt Etna Volcano, Italy - John Seach

Mt Etna's second eruption of the year occurred at SE crater on 18th February, 36 days after the previous eruption. The eruption lasted 11 hours and produced strombolian activity, fountains, and a lava flow. The active vent was located on the lower eastern flank of SE crater. The eruption was preceded by an explosive event probably at NE Crater, late on 16th February. A lava flow from SE crater descended eastward, following the same path as that of the 12-13 January, in the direction of the Valle del Bove. Light ashfall was reported on the flanks of the volcano.
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Thursday, February 17, 2011

Mt St Helens Volcano, USA - John Seach

A swarm of earthquakes hit Mt St Helens volcano on 14th February 2011. The earthquakes were centered in an area near the Johnston Ridge Observatory, about 7 km north of the crater. The earthquakes had a focus at a depth of about 2-4 km. At least 12 small earthquakes were measured in the area since Monday. The initial earthquake was the largest with a magnitude of 4.3 and hit around 10:35 a.m. local time. The earthquakes are possibly caused by fault movement under the volcano as a result of magma removal during the 1980 eruption. Earthquake swarms occurred in the same area in January 2011 and August 1980. The USGS stated "at present there appears to be no signs of unrest in the volcanic system". The current volcano alert level for Mount St. Helen's remains at normal.
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Saturday, February 05, 2011

Kirishima Volcano, Japan - John Seach

Eruptions continue at Kirishima volcano, Japan. Since the eruption began in January, an estimated 80 million tons of ash have fallen over a wide area. There have been nine large explosions at Shinmoedake. A lava dome has formed in the crater and poses a risk of pyroclastic flows. The lava dome is 600 meters in diameter and 110 meters high. The eruptions are the largest in Japan since 2004 when December 2004, when Miyakejima volcano erupted south of Tokyo.
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