March 15, 2013 - WORLDWIDE VOLCANOES - The following constitutes the new activity, unrest and ongoing report from the Volcano Discovery Group.
Tolbachik and other Kamchatka Volcanoes (Russia): (March 15) Tremor from Tolbachik remains high, although a bit lower today according to KVERT's daily update, and the eruption continues with lava effusion from the now single vent on the southern fissure. No significant changes were reported for any of the other volcanoes in Kamchatka: Moderate seismicity accompany dome building at both Sheveluch and Kizimen volcanoes. Seismic activity remains weak at Bezymianny, which also has an active dome and at Kliuchevskoi, where mild strombolian activity might still be going on in the summit crater. Seismicity fluctuates at Karymsky between weak to moderate levels, when bursts of strombolian/vulcanian explosive activity occur. Seismicity related to strong degassing and internal fluid movements remains high at Gorely volcano.
Fresh lava flows down Tolbachik volcano in Russia's Kamchatka peninsula
in a new space snapshot from NASA's Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite. The fiery volcano erupted on Nov. 27, 2012, pouring fast-moving basalt
lava through snow and ice on its steep flanks. A near-permanent ash
plume rose from Tolbachik, visible in the March 6 satellite image. The volcanic edifice records a complex geologic history. The western
half of Tolbachik is a steep-sided stratovolcano, like Mount Rainier and
Mount St. Helens in Washington, according to NASA's Earth Observatory.
The eastern half is a broad, flat shield volcano, like Hawaii's Kilauea
volcano, with nested calderas at the summit. Calderas are bowl-shaped
depressions left behind when a volcano violently explodes, emptying its
magma chamber.
With more than 300 volcanoes crowded into a California-size peninsula, Russia's Kamchatka is home to the world's highest concentration of active volcanoes. Only 29 are currently active, according to the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program.
Karkar (Papua New Guinea): (March 15) A larger explosive eruption from Karkar produced an ash plume rising to 28,000 ft (8.5 km). The plume is rapidly drifting NW.
Dukono (Halmahera): (March 15) A SO2 plume is visible on today's NOAA satellite data, suggesting a phase of elevated activity at the remote volcano.
Ambrym (Vanuatu): (March 15) SO2 emissions remain high.
Colima (Western Mexico): (March 15) The number of small explosions, rockfalls and volcanic quakes is on the increase. The volcano remains very active with many volcanic earthquakes, explosion and rockfall signals showing up on recent seismograms.
Galeras (Colombia): (March 15) Activity has remained more or less unchanged, with occasional weak ash emissions and degassing observed at the crater. A magnitude 3.1 earthquake located 5.6 km WNW of the crater was recorded yesterday at 06:12:38 local time. In the past week, there were 2 seismic swarms with a total of 260 weak quakes on 11 and 12 March.
Nevado del Ruiz (Colombia): (March 15) During the last few days, INGEOMINAS has been recording weak continuous tremor of low energy and observed increased gas emissions, which produced a plume reaching up to about 1.5 km above the crater. The increased SO2 emission is also visible on NOAA's satellite images.
Earthquakes associated with rock fracturing (caused by intruding magma at depth) remain in the same area as before, to the northeastern sector of Arenas crater, and to a lesser extent under the crater itself at depths between 2 and 6 km.
Reventador (Ecuador): (March 15) Activity fluctuates between relatively calm phases and strong ash emissions. In the evening of 13 March, a steam and ash column was seen rising 3 km above the crater.
Tungurahua (Ecuador): (March 15) Yesterday, IG the volcano showed an almost continuous emission of gas and various amounts of ash whose average height was 500 m. Individual explosions, sometimes accompanied by loud cannon-shot noises, produced eruption columns rising up to 3 km, mainly yesterday afternoon.
At night, explosions increased again and incandescent blocks were seen ejected to up to 500 m below the crater rim.
Sacabaya (Northern Chile, Bolivia and Argentina): (March 15) INGEMMET reports increased fumarolic gas emissions (but no ash so far) creating a gas column rising 400 to 1000 meters above the crater. The report also mentions that since 28 Feb, there has been an average number of 400 to 500 earthquakes per day, mostly volcano-tectonic quakes related to rock fracturing in return probably related to intruding magma at depth. The volcano remains closely monitored.
Stromboli (Eolian Islands, Italy): (March 14) The lava flow is still weakly active, but has decreased considerably in length again. Tremor remains high, suggesting that this phase of increased activity is far from over.
San Cristobal (Nicaragua): (March 14) Small volcanic earthquakes continue to occur at high frequency and occasionally merge into pulses of volcanic tremor. A swarm of small quakes at shallow depth shows up on 13 March.
Similar earthquakes appear to be returning to their background level at nearby Telica volcano, while volcanic earthquakes, normally frequent at Concepcion remain sparse.
Poas (Costa Rica): (March 14) A small swarm of local earthquakes occurred at or near Poas yesterday, possibly related to or indicating small hydrovolcanic explosions.
Sabancaya (Peru): (March 14) A 4.7 magnitude earthquake occurred near the volcano (35 km to the east) this morning, another indication that some unrest, probably caused by an intrusion of magma from depth, continues to affect this volcano.
Complete Earthquake list (worldwide) March 15, 2013.
Photo of the Day: Sakurajima Volcano, Japan.
SOURCES: Volcano Discovery | Live Science.
 |
| Tolbachik lava flows. CREDIT: NASA Earth Observatory. |
Tolbachik and other Kamchatka Volcanoes (Russia): (March 15) Tremor from Tolbachik remains high, although a bit lower today according to KVERT's daily update, and the eruption continues with lava effusion from the now single vent on the southern fissure. No significant changes were reported for any of the other volcanoes in Kamchatka: Moderate seismicity accompany dome building at both Sheveluch and Kizimen volcanoes. Seismic activity remains weak at Bezymianny, which also has an active dome and at Kliuchevskoi, where mild strombolian activity might still be going on in the summit crater. Seismicity fluctuates at Karymsky between weak to moderate levels, when bursts of strombolian/vulcanian explosive activity occur. Seismicity related to strong degassing and internal fluid movements remains high at Gorely volcano.
 |
| Fresh
basaltic lava coats the slopes of Tolbachik volcano, in Russia's
Kamchatka peninsula, in a NASA satellite image taken March 6. CREDIT: NASA Earth Observatory. |
With more than 300 volcanoes crowded into a California-size peninsula, Russia's Kamchatka is home to the world's highest concentration of active volcanoes. Only 29 are currently active, according to the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program.
Karkar (Papua New Guinea): (March 15) A larger explosive eruption from Karkar produced an ash plume rising to 28,000 ft (8.5 km). The plume is rapidly drifting NW.
Dukono (Halmahera): (March 15) A SO2 plume is visible on today's NOAA satellite data, suggesting a phase of elevated activity at the remote volcano.
Ambrym (Vanuatu): (March 15) SO2 emissions remain high.
 |
| Today's seismic recording from Colima volcano (Soma station, Univ. Colima). |
Colima (Western Mexico): (March 15) The number of small explosions, rockfalls and volcanic quakes is on the increase. The volcano remains very active with many volcanic earthquakes, explosion and rockfall signals showing up on recent seismograms.
Galeras (Colombia): (March 15) Activity has remained more or less unchanged, with occasional weak ash emissions and degassing observed at the crater. A magnitude 3.1 earthquake located 5.6 km WNW of the crater was recorded yesterday at 06:12:38 local time. In the past week, there were 2 seismic swarms with a total of 260 weak quakes on 11 and 12 March.
Nevado del Ruiz (Colombia): (March 15) During the last few days, INGEOMINAS has been recording weak continuous tremor of low energy and observed increased gas emissions, which produced a plume reaching up to about 1.5 km above the crater. The increased SO2 emission is also visible on NOAA's satellite images.
Earthquakes associated with rock fracturing (caused by intruding magma at depth) remain in the same area as before, to the northeastern sector of Arenas crater, and to a lesser extent under the crater itself at depths between 2 and 6 km.
 |
| Current seismic signal from Reventador (CONE station, IG). |
Reventador (Ecuador): (March 15) Activity fluctuates between relatively calm phases and strong ash emissions. In the evening of 13 March, a steam and ash column was seen rising 3 km above the crater.
Tungurahua (Ecuador): (March 15) Yesterday, IG the volcano showed an almost continuous emission of gas and various amounts of ash whose average height was 500 m. Individual explosions, sometimes accompanied by loud cannon-shot noises, produced eruption columns rising up to 3 km, mainly yesterday afternoon.
At night, explosions increased again and incandescent blocks were seen ejected to up to 500 m below the crater rim.
Sacabaya (Northern Chile, Bolivia and Argentina): (March 15) INGEMMET reports increased fumarolic gas emissions (but no ash so far) creating a gas column rising 400 to 1000 meters above the crater. The report also mentions that since 28 Feb, there has been an average number of 400 to 500 earthquakes per day, mostly volcano-tectonic quakes related to rock fracturing in return probably related to intruding magma at depth. The volcano remains closely monitored.
 |
| Thermal webcam image of the crater area of Stromboli (INGV). |
Stromboli (Eolian Islands, Italy): (March 14) The lava flow is still weakly active, but has decreased considerably in length again. Tremor remains high, suggesting that this phase of increased activity is far from over.
San Cristobal (Nicaragua): (March 14) Small volcanic earthquakes continue to occur at high frequency and occasionally merge into pulses of volcanic tremor. A swarm of small quakes at shallow depth shows up on 13 March.
Similar earthquakes appear to be returning to their background level at nearby Telica volcano, while volcanic earthquakes, normally frequent at Concepcion remain sparse.
Poas (Costa Rica): (March 14) A small swarm of local earthquakes occurred at or near Poas yesterday, possibly related to or indicating small hydrovolcanic explosions.
Sabancaya (Peru): (March 14) A 4.7 magnitude earthquake occurred near the volcano (35 km to the east) this morning, another indication that some unrest, probably caused by an intrusion of magma from depth, continues to affect this volcano.
Complete Earthquake list (worldwide) March 15, 2013.
Photo of the Day: Sakurajima Volcano, Japan.
 |
| Eruption plume and small pyroclastic flow at a vulcanian explosion from Sakurajima volcano, Japan (2013) (Photo: Martin Rietze) |
SOURCES: Volcano Discovery | Live Science.
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