#volcanic emissions

[biology-geology-beaches-india]

The Science Research Manuscripts of S. Sunkavally, p 581.

[yugiohcardsdaily]

Volcanic Emission

"Activate 1 of these effects (but you can only use each effect of 'Volcanic Emission' once per turn);

Take 1 'Volcanic' monster from your Deck, and either add it to your hand or Special Summon it, ignoring its Summoning conditions, but return it to the hand during the End Phase.

Target 1 Pyro monster on the field; inflict damage to your opponent equal to that monster's original ATK, or if you targeted a monster you control, the damage is halved."

[venusianwonders]

Venus is found to still have volcanic activity in a study by Robert Herrick of UAF, Scott Hensley of JPL, and more.

[whats-in-a-sentence]

Table 6.1 lists the major sources and gives approximate ranges for the yearly input. (...) Despite not being included in Table 6.1, clouds are one of the most important environmental aerosols.

"Environmental Chemistry: A Global Perspective", 4e - Gary W. VanLoon & Stephen J. Duffy

[architectureofdoom]

Lake ‘bullicante’ and the anarchy of nature, Dario Li Gioi.

"In 1954, the Snia-Viscosa closed its operations for good. This area of Italy’s capital suddenly came to experience an unusual calm, with nature becoming the sole guardian of over one hundred thousand square meters of land for decades.

It was not until the early 1990s, after it was put on the market, that a new, possible future of this place began to take shape. The way it happened was completely unexpected: during excavation works for the construction of a shopping centre, the real estate company Ponente 1978’s bulldozers damaged one of the acquifers of a nearby volcanic complex. Water began to gush from the ground incessantly; water in such abundance that it filled the hollow created by the diggers.

On that day, in the area of the former Snia Viscosa factory, a lake was born. The locals called it lago bullicante (literally, ‘the boiling lake’), in reference to the sulphurous emissions that would make these once subterranean waters bubble. From that construction accident, where nature hurriedly covered the space created by human activity, what remains today is the concrete skeleton of what was conceived as a parking lot. It emerges from the water, surrounded by a thicket of locust trees, willows, and impenetrable marsh reeds."

[scifigeneration]

Carl Sagan’s scientific legacy extends far beyond ‘Cosmos’

by Jean-Luc Margot, Professor of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences at the University of California, Los Angeles

On Nov. 9, 2024, the world will mark Carl Sagan’s 90th birthday – but sadly without Sagan, who died in 1996 at the age of 62.

Most people remember him as the co-creator and host of the 1980 “Cosmos” television series, watched worldwide by hundreds of millions of people. Others read “Contact,” his best-selling science fiction novel, or “The Dragons of Eden,” his Pulitzer Prize-winning nonfiction book. Millions more saw him popularize astronomy on “The Tonight Show.”

What most people don’t know about Sagan, and what has been somewhat obscured by his fame, is the far-reaching impact of his science, which resonates to this day. Sagan was an unequaled science communicator, astute advocate and prolific writer. But he was also an outstanding scientist.

Sagan propelled science forward in at least three important ways. He produced notable results and insights described in over 600 scientific papers. He enabled new scientific disciplines to flourish. And he inspired multiple generations of scientists. As a planetary astronomer, I believe such a combination of talents and accomplishments is rare and may occur only once in my lifetime.

Scientific accomplishments

Very little was known in the 1960s about Venus. Sagan investigated how the greenhouse effect in its carbon dioxide atmosphere might explain the unbearably high temperature on Venus – approximately 870 degrees Fahrenheit (465 degrees Celsius). His research remains a cautionary tale about the dangers of fossil fuel emissions here on Earth.

Sagan proposed a compelling explanation for seasonal changes in the brightness of Mars, which had been incorrectly attributed to vegetation or volcanic activity. Wind-blown dust was responsible for the mysterious variations, he explained.

Sagan and his students studied how changes to the reflectivity of Earth’s surface and atmosphere affect our climate. They considered how the detonation of nuclear bombs could inject so much soot into the atmosphere that it would lead to a yearslong period of substantial cooling, a phenomenon known as nuclear winter.

With unusual breadth in astronomy, physics, chemistry and biology, Sagan pushed forward the nascent discipline of astrobiology – the study of life in the universe. Together with the research scientist Bishun Khare at Cornell University, Sagan conducted pioneering laboratory experiments and showed that certain ingredients of prebiotic chemistry, called tholins, and certain building blocks of life, known as amino acids, form naturally in laboratory environments that mimic planetary settings.

He also modeled the delivery of prebiotic molecules to the early Earth by asteroids and comets, and he was deeply engaged in the biological experiments onboard the Mars Viking landers. Sagan also speculated about the possibility of balloon-shaped organisms floating in the atmospheres of Venus and Jupiter.

His passion for finding life elsewhere extended far beyond the solar system. He was a champion of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, also known as SETI. He helped fund and participated in a systematic search for extraterrestrial radio beacons by scanning 70% of the sky with the physicist and electrical engineer Paul Horowitz.

He proposed and co-designed the plaques and the “Golden Records” now affixed to humanity’s most distant ambassadors, the Pioneer and Voyager spacecrafts. It is unlikely that extraterrestrials will ever find these artifacts, but Sagan wanted people to contemplate the possibility of communication with other civilizations.

Carl Sagan, offering his unique commentary in a scene from ‘Cosmos.’

Advocacy

Sagan’s scientific output repeatedly led him to become an eloquent advocate on issues of societal and scientific significance. He testified before Congress about the dangers of climate change. He was an antinuclear activist and spoke out against the Strategic Defense Initiative, also known as “Star Wars.” He urged collaborations and a joint space mission with the Soviet Union, in an attempt to improve U.S.-Soviet relations. He spoke directly with members of Congress about the search for extraterrestrial intelligence and organized a petition signed by dozens of prominent scientists urging support for the search.

Carl Sagan, speaking out against the use of nuclear weapons, at the Great Peace March in 1986. Visions of America LLC/Corbis via Getty Images

But perhaps his most important gift to society was his promotion of truth-seeking and critical thinking. He encouraged people to muster the humility and discipline to confront their most cherished beliefs – and to rely on evidence to obtain a more accurate view of the world. His most cited book, “The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark,” is a precious resource for anyone trying to navigate this age of disinformation.

Impact

A scientist’s impact can sometimes be gauged by the number of times their scholarly work is cited by other scientists. According to Sagan’s Google Scholar page, his work continues to accumulate more than 1,000 citations per year.

Indeed, his current citation rate exceeds that of many members of the National Academy of Sciences, who are “elected by their peers for outstanding contributions to research,” according to the academy’s website, and is “one of the highest honors a scientist can receive.”

Sagan was nominated for election into the academy during the 1991-1992 cycle, but his nomination was challenged at the annual meeting; more than one-third of the members voted to keep him out, which doomed his admission. An observer at that meeting wrote to Sagan, “It is the worst of human frailties that keeps you out: jealousy.” This belief was affirmed by others in attendance. In my opinion, the academy’s failure to admit Sagan remains an enduring stain on the organization.

No amount of jealousy can diminish Sagan’s profound and wide-ranging legacy. In addition to his scientific accomplishments, Sagan has inspired generations of scientists and brought an appreciation of science to countless nonscientists. He has demonstrated what is possible in the realms of science, communication and advocacy. Those accomplishments required truth-seeking, hard work and self-improvement. On the 90th anniversary of Sagan’s birth, a renewed commitment to these values would honor his memory.

[livingforstars]

Jupiter's Auroras - October 18th, 1996.

"Auroras are especially large on Jupiter. In pictures released on October 17th, 1996, the Hubble Space Telescope imaged these unusual light displays in more detail than ever before. Jupiter's auroras are linked to its volcanic moon Io. Io's volcanoes release particles, some of which become ionised, trapped by Jupiter's magnetic field, and rain down on the gas giant. The resulting auroral displays may be thousands of times brighter than any auroral display on Earth, and involve unusual spots. The above pictures show how the extended auroral emissions rotate with Jupiter, while the auroral spots stay synchronised to Io as it circles Jupiter."

[joemomrgneissguy]

IT'S TIME FOR PERMIAN WEEKEND BABEY!!!

Do you like volcanoes but wish they were bigger?

Would you like to see the world choked with smoke?

Do you in all your cosmic power feel like things need a hard reset?

Then the Permian period might be for you!

Lasting from 298.9-251.9 Ma, if you compressed all of Earth's history into a year, December 7th-11th would mark the Permian period.

While it did see some innovations in life with the continued diversification of therapsids and sauropsids as they spread around Pangaea, the period is mainly known for mass extinctions, of which there were at least three.

The first was fairly minor in comparison to the others, where the end of the early Permian saw the extinction of several groups of early land vertebrates such as Dimetrodon as other tetrapods gained prominence.

And then, some time in the mid Permian, the sea began to erupt.

The Emeishan Traps are a formation in China where basalt covers an area extending approximately 250,000 square kilometers, which is roughly the size of the state of Michigan. It could have originally been twice that size, covering an area larger than the state of California with volcanic deposits an average of 700 meters thick. Originating on the sea floor, it released massive amounts of sulfur and carbon dioxides, wreaking havoc on the world's climate. A recent paper published in the journal Geology also makes the case that the eruptions also managed to heat up oil and gas deposits in the area, cooking them underground and leading to the release of even more carbon dioxide and methane gas.

Estimates on the impact of this eruption vary, but around a third of marine life went extinct, and the majority of survivors on land were burrowing animals.

This was already about as significant as the extinction that would kill the non-avian dinosaurs in the late Triassic Cretaceous in terms of severity, but it would soon be eclipsed by the single worst mass extinction in Earth's history: the end Permian, or "The Great Dying".

In what is now modern day Siberia, another massive series of eruptions took place, forming the Siberian Traps. Over the course of two million years, around a million cubic miles of basalt were laid down over an area of 7 million square kilometers. This was 14 times the size of the Emeishan Traps, and covered an area roughly the size of Australia. Most of it erupted in the first million years. The massive amounts of carbon and sulfur dioxide released led to dramatic ocean acidification and climate change.

It is speculated that the traps also lit coal fields on fire, adding to their emissions. This, combined with a possible contribution from a meteorite impact on the other side of the world led to mass die offs.

81% of Marine life, and 70% of terrestrial species went extinct.

On land, it is estimated to have taken nearly 30 million years for life to recover.

As heavy as that is though, it did recover.

When the dust settled, there was still life in the oceans, and plants still grew on the land, and animals came out from their burrows, blinking in the light of a new day. And they lived.

New species would come. Life would be made new. The sun continued to shine, and rain continued to fall, and in the end the Earth had made it through.

Life found a way to make it through a level of destruction beyond anything we have ever seen or could imagine as a species. And, with a little bit of hope, help, and luck, so can we.

Edit: ( Mistakenly wrote "Triassic" rather than Cretaceous)

[yellowstone-national-park]

This is an update on the hydrothermal explosion that occurred just before 10 AM on Tuesday, July 23, in Biscuit Basin, Yellowstone National Park.

National Park Service (NPS) field crews have completed a preliminary assessment of the conditions following the hydrothermal explosion at Black Diamond Pool. For a map showing the locations of the features in that area, see https://www.usgs.gov/media/images/map-major-features-biscuit-basin-yellowstone-national-park.

What happened? The July 23, 2024, hydrothermal explosion at Biscuit Basin resulted from water suddenly transitioning to steam in the shallow hydrothermal system beneath Black Diamond Pool and was not caused by volcanic activity. Seismicity, ground deformation, and gas and thermal emissions remain at their normal background levels, and there were no detectable precursors to this event.

The explosion, which sent steam and debris to a height of hundreds of feet above the ground, destroyed a nearby boardwalk and ejected grapefruit-sized rocks tens to hundreds of feet from the source. Some blocks closest to the explosion site are about 3 feet (1 meter) wide and weigh hundreds of pounds. The explosion was largely directed to the northeast toward the Firehole River, and the largest blocks of debris fell in that direction. The dark color of the explosion was a result of mud and debris mixed with steam and boiling water. Although visitors were present at the time of the event, no injuries were reported.

Black Diamond Pool and Black Opal Pool were affected by Tuesday’s explosion, and while they remain distinct features, the shape of Black Diamond has changed somewhat. Both pools are murky due to debris, and the unstable ground around their edges occasionally slides into the water. Just after the eruption, Black Diamond Pool exhibited minor roiling and water spouting. The water level in the pool rose over the course of the day, and by Tuesday afternoon the roiling transitioned to occasional bursts of hot water that reached about 8 feet (2.4 meters) in height.

What is happening now? By Wednesday morning, July 24, the levels of Black Diamond Pool and Black Opal Pool had risen enough that both were overflowing and sending murky water into the Firehole River. No water bursts from Black Diamond Pool were witnessed Wednesday morning.

What are ongoing hazards? Given the recent changes to the hydrothermal plumbing system, small explosions of boiling water from this area in Biscuit Basin continue to be possible over the coming days to months. USGS and NPS geologists will be monitoring conditions, mapping the debris field, and sampling water to assess any changes in the shallow hydrothermal system over the next several days.

Hydrothermal explosions typically occur in the park one to a few times per year, but often in the back country where they may not be immediately detected.

Similar, although smaller, hydrothermal explosions took place in 1989 at Porkchop Geyser in Norris Geyser Basin, and on April 15, 2024, from the Porcelain Terrace Area of Norris Geyser Basin. A small hydrothermal explosion occurred from Wall Pool, in Biscuit Basin, in 2009. Significant hydrothermal explosions, probably similar in size to that of July 23, 2024, occurred in the 1880s at Excelsior Geyser, in Midway Geyser Basin.

Yellowstone National Park has closed Biscuit Basin for the remainder of the 2024 season for visitor safety. Grand Loop Road remains open to vehicles, and other nearby thermal basins, like Black Sand Basin, are open. Additional Yellowstone National Park information about visitor access can be found at https://www.nps.gov/yell/index.htm.

More information Yellowstone Volcano Observatory monitoring website: https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/yellowstone

2022-2032 YVO Monitoring Plan: https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/sir20225032

Preliminary Assessment of Volcanic and Hydrothermal Hazards in Yellowstone National Park and Vicinity: https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/ofr20071071

Yellowstone National Park images from Biscuit Basin explosion site: https://www.flickr.com/photos/yellowstonenps/albums/72177720319112324/

[oldgayjew]

Why aren't the emissions from these creatures ever included in the "Pollution Index" ...

Massive sulfur dioxide, volcanic ash and copious amounts of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide ...

Just asking for a friend ...

[dasturdlydangerousduck]

Hmmmm. The Three Caballeros in super hero suits.

These aren't really super hero suits per'se, but they have superpowers lol:

The Ripped Rager (Donald Duck)

Powers: Volcanic Heat Fused Body, Triggered by Rage Filled Anger, Steam Emissions from all over his body

Donald Duck has always been the worst when it comes to rage, but after falling into a volcano after trying to save his family from villains, he miraculously came out unscathed. His pent up anger had made him indestructible, and his temper made his skin turn a shade of red. And not being a muscle duck in his prime, he can grow his muscles in the blink of an eye when he gets enraged. He still is trying to keep his cool when thinking of villains, even going so far as to restrain himself with chains, but he still has a long way to go.

Illumina Capoeira (Jose Carioca)

Powers: Blinding Light Emmanted from his muscles and veins. Master of Capoeira dancing and fighting

A famous capoeira dancer from the wondrous city of Baia, Jose Carioca had his body changed after a swarm of radioactive bioluminescent Portugese Man O' Wars washed up on the beaches. Jose was fatally stung multiple times, and it would have killed him in the long run, but the radiated Man O' War venom affected and strengthen his veins to a powerful extreme. As his muscles and veins tense, his body now shines a light so bright, and when combined with his dancing, no villain could ever keep track of his movements.

Trigger Finger (Panchito Pistoles)

Powers: Cybernetic Enhancments, built in laser blasters that fire lightning fast lasers/bullets

Panchito was a well-reknowed sheriff and cowboy in his town, but because of his status, he had his mortal enemies as well. It got so bad to the point that he was set into a trap where he was crushed under a rock in the desert canyons. When he woke up, his whole body felt a numb, and he accidentally shot lasers and bullets out of his hands and hips. He was now a cyborg, and he returned to his hometown to the adoration of his fans. Panchito doesn't even need to use his trusty guns anymore now that he now a walking ammunition machine!

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

A Fiery Display at Kīlauea

On December 23, 2024, after three months of quiet, Kīlauea began spewing fountains of lava. The lava poured from a line of fissures near the southwest wall of Halema'uma'u crater, which lies within Kaluapele—the Hawaiian volcano’s summit caldera. The ongoing eruption is the sixth to occur within this caldera since 2020.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Hawaiian Volcano Observatory saw eruptive activity begin at 2:20 a.m. local time on December 23. That morning, USGS observed fountains of lava reaching up to 80 meters (262 feet) high. By 9:30 a.m., a Hawaiian Volcano Observatory helicopter measured new lava spread across 650 acres (265 hectares) of the crater floor, with an average depth of about 10 feet (3 meters).

The OLI (Operational Land Imager) on Landsat 8 captured this image of Kīlauea’s caldera on December 24. The image is false color (bands 7, 6, and 8) to highlight the infrared signature of the new lava (red and yellow). That same day, USGS took the photograph below of lava erupting within Kaluapele.

Volcanic gas—primarily water vapor, carbon dioxide, and sulfur dioxide—wafts southwest of the caldera in the image (in blue). Volcanic gas was the primary concern for this eruption because it can have far-reaching effects. Sulfur dioxide released from the summit during an eruption can create an unhealthy haze known as volcanic smog (vog) that can drift downwind.

Kīlauea is Hawaii’s youngest and most active volcano. Prior to the December 2024 event, it displayed activity in September 2024, when USGS observed multiple eruptions east of Kīlauea’s caldera, in a well-known magma storage region in the east rift zone.

According to USGS, eruptions in the summit region have lasted for about a week to more than a year. This eruption, like most others, started with vigorous lava and volcanic gas emission, but as of December 30, the intensity of lava flow had diminished.

NASA Earth Observatory image by Wanmei Liang, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey. USGS photo by H. Winslow. Story by Emily Cassidy.

[so-true-overdue]

The Planet is Totally Fine. It's Just Us Who Aren't.

Of course, the planet is fine. It's been through worse, right? Ice ages, meteor strikes, volcanic tantrums—Earth is basically a tough old rock with a knack for surviving whatever the universe throws at it. But let’s talk about the real problem: us.

You see, human-caused climate change is just a minor inconvenience for Earth. It's not like we're boiling the oceans, melting ice caps, or turning lush forests into deserts. Oh, wait—yes, we are. Funny how that works.

But don’t worry, the Earth will bounce back. Sure, it might take a few million years, but what's that compared to our short, fleeting existence? We, on the other hand, might not be so lucky. Our cozy, predictable climate—perfect for growing food, building cities, and basically thriving—is slowly being warped into something unrecognizable.

And who’s responsible for this lovely transformation? Oh, just our collective genius for burning fossil fuels, clear-cutting forests, and generally treating the atmosphere like our personal trash can. But hey, at least we’ve made some progress. Who needs polar bears, coral reefs, or, you know, breathable air? We’ve got air conditioning and desalination plants. Problem solved.

So let’s be clear: the Earth will survive our little experiment with carbon emissions. It’s just us, and maybe a few million other species, who might not. But that’s fine. If the dinosaurs didn’t complain about extinction, why should we?

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from the LA Times:

There’s a lithium bonanza happening at the Salton Sea.

The boom started when one of the world’s largest supplies of lithium was discovered one mile below the dying lake. The metal is required to produce electric car batteries and is essential to reducing carbon emissions.

Yet lost in the excitement about the money and new jobs that the mining projects could bring are the concerns of the people who live there.

The impoverished area — which is more than 80% Latino — already has a childhood asthma rate that is more than twice the national average.

The asthma cases have been tied to the toxic dust created as the Salton Sea recedes from lack of water. And some local residents fear that the number of respiratory cases could soar even higher as the lithium mining projects drink up more of the area’s much fought over allocation from the Colorado River.

Residents also worry about the hazardous waste that the mining projects could create. And the area’s Indigenous tribes are concerned that sites they consider sacred, including Obsidian Butte, a volcanic outcropping on the Salton Sea’s shore, could be disturbed.

In March, a local community group called Comite Civico del Valle, along with Earthworks, a national nonprofit, filed a legal petition to stop the first of the planned lithium mining projects, which is known as Hell’s Kitchen.

The groups say the potential hazards of the project by Controlled Thermal Resources, a privately held company, were not properly studied before the Imperial County Board of Superiors unanimously approved it in January.

“Controlled Thermal Resources boasts about the sustainability attributes of direct lithium extraction, yet public health, hazardous waste, and water concerns remain unresolved,” said Luis Olmedo, executive director of Comite Civico del Valle.

The two groups want the project halted until the risks are studied and measures are taken to mitigate any harm that could happen to the communities or environment.

The county and company disagree and say that the project’s potential risks were properly considered in the environmental impact statement that California law requires.

“The County believes that the concerns were adequately addressed during the initial stages of the project development,” said Eddie Lopez, a county spokesperson.

Jim Turner, Controlled Thermal Resources’ president, said the company spent two years performing studies to ensure that the lithium could be extracted safely. The board of supervisors agreed that the company had completed that work, he said. “The official opinion is that the job was done very well,” he said.

Government officials are among those who want to move quickly. They say the Salton Sea could be the cleanest major source of lithium in the world and make the U.S. a major player in production.

Controlled Thermal Resources and two other companies with mining projects in the works use a process in which the metal is extracted from the hot, steaming brine that geothermal power plants bring up from the depths to produce electricity.

Lithium is removed from the brine before it is reinjected back into the geothermal reservoir deep underground.

The process, known as direct lithium extraction, is said to be far less damaging to the environment than hard rock mining or by pumping brine into large evaporation ponds.

The U.S. produces very little lithium even though the demand is great and growing fast with the rising purchases of electric vehicles.

Already 11 geothermal plants have been built around the lake. Controlled Thermal Resources’ project would be the first to combine electricity generation with lithium extraction.

[darkmaga-returns]

We can start with the “weight” of the air for the entire planet. Feel free to grab your own numbers!

Using Brave AI:

“… based on the Earth’s surface area and atmospheric pressure, the total amount of “atmosphere” there is an atmospheric volume of about 5.15 x 10^18 cubic meters.

Using a “computer modelled” constant “global” CO2 parts per million of 427, and the average molecular weight of CO2 (44 g/mol) – (compared to average molecular weight of air of 29 g/mol), we can estimate the “weight” of CO2 in the atmosphere as:

“427 ppm (CO2) x 5.15 x 10^18 cubic meters (atmospheric volume) x 28.97 g/mol (average air molecular weight) / 44 g/mol (CO2 molecular weight) ≈ 3.23 x 10^12 metric tons of CO2.”

3.23 trillion tones of CO2 in the earth’s atmosphere (out of around 7,560 trillion tons total atmosphere in the world,

The general claim is that CO2 emissions by mankind are around 37 billion metric tonnes a year (using dodgy computer models and assumptions for estimates).

37 billion tonnes annual emissions (US around 5 billion of those) out of 3.23 trillion “naturally occurring” CO2 = 1.1% of the total CO2 in the world.

The claim is that “Annual global CO2 emissions from fossil fuel combustion and cement production are around 10.7 Petagrams of Carbon (Pg C) per year, with a projected limit of 12-15 Pg C per year by 2050.”

So, a 26% increase from 10.7 Pg to a mid-point of 13.5 Pg results in an increase n global average temperatures of 1.5 degrees C over the next 25 years. Zero point zero six degrees a year – I am thinking that there is an equal chance of global cooling in that time!

Pesky petagrams! They are the next step up from millions, billions, and trillions.

“A 1.5°C (2.7°F) warming above 1880 levels is projected by 2050, according to one snippet.”

From this global average temperature starting point, taken from here:

Annual 2023 Global Climate Report | National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI)

“The year 2023 was the warmest year since global records began in 1850 at 1.18°C (2.12°F) above the 20th century average of 13.9°C (57.0°F). “

The “globe average temperature” – whatever that means (in cities, in rural areas, a “global” surface area average including deserts, jungles, ice caps, mountain ranges, and the oceans? Or mostly cities?

No mention of the impact of Hunga Tonga, or other volcanic activity!

[eopederson]

Fresh Flows Across Iceland

"Lava poured from a volcanic fissure near the town of Grindavík, Iceland, in spring 2024. The eruption, which began on March 16 and remained active over two weeks later, was the largest in a string of four volcanic events on the Reykjanes peninsula starting in December 2023. 

The OLI (Operational Land Imager) on��Landsat 8 captured this image of the ongoing eruption on March 30, 2024. The natural color scene is overlaid with an infrared signal to help distinguish the lava’s heat signature. The active part of the fissure and the origin of a volcanic plume are apparent. While the eruption was still active at this time, additional satellite and ground observations indicated it was likely waning. 

The eruption began at 8:23 p.m. local time on March 16, the Icelandic Met Office (IMO) reported. A fissure nearly 3 kilometers (2 miles) long quickly opened in a similar location to the February 2024 eruption. Hundreds of people at the Blue Lagoon, as well as a small number in Grindavík, were evacuated within about 30 minutes of the eruption starting. 

In the days that followed, lava flowed toward infrastructure such as water pipes and roads, the town of Grindavík, and the ocean. Human-constructed barriers of earth and rock diverted lava away from town, although a flow extended across one road. Officials were initially concerned that lava would reach the coast and cool rapidly upon contacting water. This could have posed additional hazards such as the production of hydrogen chloride gas, but the flow stopped short.

This Landsat image comparison shows the recent changes on the Reykjanes peninsula. In September 2023 (left), the area was quiet volcanically. By February 10, 2024 (center), three separate fissure eruptions had occurred. The footprint of new basaltic rock grew in March 2024 (right) as new lava spanned nearly 6 square kilometers (2.3 square miles), according to the IMO. 

Like the eruptions that preceded it, the spring 2024 event was effusive, not explosive. Effusive eruptions tend to emit minimal ash, and their plumes typically contain water vapor, sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide, and small amounts of other volcanic gases. 

This eruption did not disrupt air travel, but sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions were hazardous locally at times. Workers evacuated the power plant north of Grindavík on March 18 due to gas pollution, the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service reported. The SO2 emissions from this eruption were forecast to drift across the United Kingdom and northern Europe, according to models based on satellite observations, but at an altitude too high to affect surface air quality. 

Unlike the other recent eruptions in this region, the springtime event stretched out over weeks rather than a couple of days. The reason for the relatively prolonged eruption may be that magma now has an easier path to the surface, experts suggested in news reports. Others think that magma is no longer accumulating in the shallow magma chamber beneath the area and that this eruption could be the last in the longer cycle. 

NASA Earth Observatory images by Lauren Dauphin, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey. Story by Lindsey Doermann."

And to think we were there in September about the time the first photo was made! The main road connecting Grindavik to the remainder of Iceland has been cut in two places. According to their website, the popular tourist attraction Blue Lagoon is closed due to "unfavourable air quality" but is scheduled to reopen tomorrow 11 April.

Wish I could hop on a plane to see this in person, but other obligations preclude such a trip anytime soon.