PLANETARY TREMORS: Strong 5.9 Magnitude Earthquake Hits Off Western Indian-Antarctica In The Indian Ocean, South Of Australia - USGS! [MAPS]

USGS earthquake location.

February 28, 2016 - ANTARCTICA - A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.9 has struck the Indian Ocean between Antarctica and Australia, seismologists say.

No tsunami warnings have been issued.

The earthquake, which struck at about 21:29:43 UTC on Sunday, and was centered about 1106 kilometers (687 miles) southwest of Geeveston, Australia.

USGS shakemap intensity.

The earthquake struck at a depth of about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) below the seabed, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported.

The earthquake was not strong enough to generate a tsunami, and no alerts were issued by the Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Centre.

No damage or casualties were expected from the temblor.

PLANETARY TREMORS: Strong 5.9 Magnitude Earthquake Hits Off Antarctica In The Indian Ocean, South Of Australia - USGS! [MAPS]

USGS earthquake location.

February 23, 2016 - ANTARCTICA - A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.9 has struck the Indian Ocean between Antarctica and Australia, seismologists say.

No tsunami warnings have been issued.

The earthquake, which struck at about 5:08 a.m. Sydney time on Wednesday, was centered about 454 kilometers (282 miles) northeast of the French scientific station Dumont d'Urville in Antarctica, or about 2,261 kilometers (1,405 miles) south of Hobart on Tasmania.

USGS shakemap intensity.

The earthquake struck at a depth of about 7.7 kilometers (4.8 miles) below the seabed, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported.

The earthquake was not strong enough to generate a tsunami, and no alerts were issued by the Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Centre.

No damage or casualties were expected from Wednesday's earthquake. - BNO News.

GLOBAL VOLCANISM: Big Ben - Rare Australian Volcanic Eruption Captured On Film!

The still-smoking peak of Big Ben volcano, shortly after the eruption.© Pete Harmsen

February 4, 2016 - AUSTRALIA - Australia's only two active volcanoes have both erupted - and scientists on board a ship conducting research nearby caught the rare event on film. The Big Ben volcano on remote Heard Island in sub-Antarctica, almost 1800 kilometres north of Australia's Antarctic base at Davis Station, erupted a combination of poisonous gases and red-hot lava.

It was the first time it had done so in decades.

We witnessed the lava descending Big Ben interacting dramatically with the snow and ice cover of the mountain.

Richard Arculus, ANU volcanologist

The other volcano, on the neighbouring McDonald islands, erupted gas only. Scientists on board the CSIRO's RV Investigator were visiting the islands to conduct research into the concentration of iron in Antarctic waters.

"We witnessed the lava descending Big Ben as it interacted dramatically with the snow and ice cover of the mountain," said ANU volcanologist Professor Richard Arculus, who witnessed the eruption first hand.

"It is possible that a quenched carapace of glass is formed over the lava allowing the flow to descend considerable distances downhill, forming lava tubes." Big Ben volcano is one of the most active in the world. Changes in appearance of the lava flows on the summit of Big Ben during successive days indicate active eruptions have been taking place over the past week, Professor Arculus said.

The summit, Mawson Peak, of Big Ben volcano on Heard Island. © Pete Harmsen

Very high penguin rookery and smoke drifting out of the vent. © CSIRO

Volcanoes erupt when the Earth's magma, which is lighter than surrounding rock, rises and collects in subterranean chambers. Eventually some of the magma pushes through vents and fissures and erupts as lava on the surface.

"The lava types erupting from Big Ben are the end-products of extensive processes of selective crystal withdrawal from alkali-rich basalts within crustal magma chambers," he explained.

The end-product of this process is a lava type characteristic of other hot-spot volcanoes like Mt Erebus, Kilimanjaro and Gran Canaria. "The eruptions were once-in-a-lifetime events for scientists on board," said Monash University geologist Associate Professor Steven Micklethwaite.

© Brisbane Times

"Although it was difficult to do much more than watch and observe, the insights gained into the eruption behaviour of such a furiously remote volcano are important.

"Monitoring these types of eruptions tells us about how lava interacts with ice, which can be quite spectacular," Associate Professor Micklethwaite said.


WATCH: Big Ben erupts.

Expeditioner Jodi Fox, whose doctoral thesis is on Heard Island volcanism, said observing lava flowing down the flank of Big Ben over a glacier was incredible. "Given persistent cloud cover and generally foul weather, I didn't think we'd observe much of the volcano on this voyage," she said.

The team spotted the eruption while circling the islands to map the sea floor to identify hydrothermal systems driven by underwater volcanoes. Scientists believe these are driving the Southern Ocean ecosystem from the bottom-up.

They are testing the hypothesis that hydrothermal systems release iron, a fertiliser for planktonic blooms, which create half of the planet's oxygen.

The research sheds light on global fluctuations in nutrients. It will also help determine the merits of artificially seeding the oceans with iron in order to increase the uptake of atmospheric carbon dioxide, the main driver of climate change. - Brisbane Times.

GLOBAL VOLCANISM: Weather Anomalies - Scientists Film Rare Eruption Of Remote Antarctic Volcano! [VIDEOS]

Big Ben has erupted at least three other times in the past 15 years.
© Pete Harmsen

February 1, 2016 - HEARD ISLAND - Australian scientists have witnessed the rare eruption of an Antarctic volcano off the coast of the frozen continent.

The scientists, from Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), filmed the volcanic event by chance while aboard research vessel "Investigator" studying the fringe of Antarctica's Heard Island.

The crew, working in conjunction with the University of Tasmania's Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), were actually looking to study underwater volcanoes before the land-based variety caught their attention.

Heard Island, a remote sub-Antarctic region, is home to Big Ben, an active volcano which is believed to have only erupted three times since the turn of the century.

Given the island's isolation, viewing Big Ben - which is mostly covered in ice throughout the year - during an eruption is considered a geoscientific rarity. Often, satellite images provide the only evidence that an eruption has occurred.


WATCH: Heard Island volcano erupting.

Chief scientist aboard The Investigator, IMAS professor and geophysicist Mike Coffin, said on Monday it was a great thrill to film the 2,745-meter volcano in action, becoming one of the few people in human history to have witnessed it erupting.

"We have 10 excited geoscientists aboard Investigator, and our enthusiasm has spread to our 50 shipmates," Coffin said in a CSIRO press release on Monday.

The crew, based 4,100 km southwest of the Western Australian city of Perth, are only three weeks into their 58-day research voyage.

Despite the trip barely getting underway, the researchers claim to have already uncovered "50 potential underwater hydrothermal plumes," which may help establish whether active underwater volcanoes - which create these plumes - form the foundation for life in the Southern Ocean. - Shanghai Daily.

PLANETARY TREMORS: Powerful And Shallow Magnitude 7.1 Earthquake Hits Southeast Indian Ridge - No Tsunami Warning!

USGS earthquake location.

December 4, 2015 - INDIAN OCEAN - A powerful and shallow earthquake registered as magnitude 7.1 by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) hit the Southeast Indian Ridge at 22:24 UTC on December 4, 2015.

The agency is reporting a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). EMSC is also reporting magnitude 7.1 at a depth of 10 km. Australia Geoscience is reporting M7.2 at a depth of 0 km.

According to the USGS, the epicenter was located 1,020 km (634 miles) northeast of Heard Island, Heard Island and McDonald Islands and 2,961 km (1 840 miles) southwest of Busselton, Australia.

USGS earthquake location.

There are no people living within 100 km (62 miles) radius.

USGS issued green alert for shaking-related fatalities and economic losses. There is a low likelihood of casualties and damage.

USGS shakemap intensity.

According to NOAA's National Weather Service no tsunami warnings, advisories or watches are in effect.

 

GLOBAL VOLCANISM: Big Ben Is Rumbling Fiercely, Ready To Erupt - Lava Is Spilling From Australia's Only Active Volcano; NASA Images Reveal Lava Lake Has Overflowed Crater?!

May 01, 2013 - AUSTRALIA - New NASA photo reveals the lava lake on Australia's only active volcano has overflowed the crater, showing possible signs of eruption.

An image taken by NASA's EO-1 satellite shows the lava flow on Australia's only active volcano widening at the top.
Picture: NASA  

NASA's EO-1 satellite snapped the shot of Big Ben, which is located on the remote Heard Island, about 4,100km southwest of Perth, in the sub-Antarctic, on April 20.

When compared to another image taken on April 7, it appears the lava flow is widening at the top, NASA said.

The volcano's caldera appears to have filled with so much lava that some has since cascaded down Mawson Peak.

In October 2012, satellites measured subtle signals that suggested volcanic activity on remote Heard Island. These images, captured several months later, show proof of an eruption on Mawson Peak. By April 7, 2013, Mawson’s steep-walled summit crater had filled, and a trickle of lava had spilled down the volcano’s southwestern flank. On April 20 the lava flow remained visible, and had even widened slightly just below the summit. These natural-color images were collected by the Advanced Land Imager (ALI) on the Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite.
Picture: NASA

Heard Island's remoteness and Mawson Peak's altitude of 2745 metres mean there's nothing to fear from the eruption, The Register reports.

No permanent human presence exists on the island, beyond an automated weather station. - Herald Sun.

GLOBAL VOLCANISM: The Volcano Discovery Report For December 29-30 - Pacaya, Fuego, Popocatépetl, Santiaguito, San Cristobal, Concepcion, Arenal, Galeras, Nevado del Ruiz, Tungurahua, Copahue, Cerro Machin, Reventador, Plosky Tolbachik, Shiveluch and Heard Island!

December 30, 2012 - WORLDWIDE VOLCANOES - The following constitutes the new activity, unrest and ongoing report from the Volcano Discovery Group.

Pacaya volcano is waking up. A series of 3 small explosions occurred yesterday morning and generated small ash plumes rising 500 m. The explosions were probably phreatic, but along with the previous explosions 10 days ago they likely indicate that magma has started to rise within the volcano and might reach the surface soon again. Strombolian and/or lava flow effusion activity, Pacaya's typical activity, could thus resume in a relatively short time. In a press release, CONRED advised residents to remain calm and report observations of activity to authorities, not to spread rumors and put themselves at risk. Civil aviation was advised to be on watch (Pacaya is close to Guatemala Int. airport) in the event of increased explosive activity and have plans ready in case flights need to be diverted.

Activity at Fuego volcano has remained essentially unchanged with weak strombolian explosions (11 counted during 28-29 Dec) producing small ash plumes up to about 500 m high, and the continuing lava flow, about 500 m long on the upper southern slope.

The Santiaguito lava dome has been comparably calm with few or no explosive activity reported during the past days.

The number of small explosions and steam-ash emissions from Popocatépetl volcano in Mexico remains at moderate levels (1-2 per hour). Glow from the crater indicates that the slow magma supply to the crater continues.

Activity at at San Cristobal volcano in Nicaragua has calmed down, at least for now. Only few and weak new ash emissions occurred since the afternoon of 28 Dec, and current seismic activity is low.

At nearby Concepcion volcano, an increase in small volcanic quakes can be seen on recent seismograms.

Arenal volcano in Costa Rica showed some elevated internal activity on 29 Dec, but has been calm again today.

Mild ash explosions continue to occur sporadically at Galeras volcano in Colombia, such as recently seen on 29 Dec. For the month of December, this is the 6th time ash emissions were observed (although more could have occurred and gone unnoticed during times of bad weather). In comparison, there have been 2 emissions observed in November, 12 in October, and 5 in September.

An SO2 plume drifting from Nevado del Ruiz volcano shows ongoing intense degassing. INGEOMINAS reported occasional steam and ash venting. Small earthquakes and occasional low-level volcanic tremor pulses can be seen on the seismic recordings.

Seismic unrest with small deep (12-15 km) quakes continues at Cerro Machin volcano.

In Ecuador, activity at Tungurahua volcano has picked up again. During 29 Dec, the Instituto Geofísico (IG) reported 30 explosions over 24 hours of small to moderate size, sometimes accompanied by loud sounds and ejection of incandescent material. Ash plumes were reported reaching 25,000 ft (7.5 km) altitude. Numerous volcanic quakes and tremor pulses accompanied constant gas and ash emissions.

At Reventador volcano, sporadic small explosions and ash emissions continue, but at lower levels than during past months.

Visual and seismic activity have decreased at Copahue volcano in Chile. No more ash emissions or incandescence have been observed since 29 Dec. It is thought that the small eruption that had started on 22 Dec has ended. The small body of lava (a lava dome) that was emplaced inside the crater is now cooling. SERNAGEOMIN has lowered the alert level to yellow.

The lava flows from the southern fissure of Plosky Tolbachik volcano in Kamchatka continue to be alimented and KVERT reports that tremor is still strong (although much less than 1-2 weeks ago). The plume and visible glow from the eruption are smaller as well but still present.

MODIS satellite data continue to show a hot spot at Australia's Heard Island volcano. This indicates that some activity is probably present at this volcano.

Activity at Shiveluch has been relatively calm, but the slow extrusion of the lava dome inside the crater continues as incandescence and occasional explosions, but also occasional rockfalls and associated weak pyroclastic flows show. As our French colleagues from activolcans noticed, a small partial dome collapse occurred last night at 21h54 local time and produced a pyroclastic flow that traveled almost 1 km through the ravine at the base of the active dome. Webcam images also give evidence that from time to time lahars are generated in the same ravine.

GLOBAL VOLCANISM: The Volcano Discovery Report - Cleveland, Lokon, the Tjörnes Fracture Zone, Mayon,Taal, Popocatépetl, Fuego, Santiaguito, Alaid, and Heard Island!

November 11, 2012 - WORLDWIDE VOLCANOES - The following constitutes the new activity, unrest and ongoing report from the Volcano Discovery Group.

New explosions occurred earlier today from Paluweh (Rokatenda) volcano in Flores, Indonesia. An ash plume was observed at 09:30 GMT reaching 8,000 ft (2.4 km) altitude and extending 80 nm (about 140 km) to the NW.

A new explosion occurred earlier today at Cleveland volcano in the Aleutian Islands. A small ash cloud was detected on satellite images. AVO raised the Aviation Color Code to orange. Lokon volcano in North Sulawesi produced another small explosion today at 13:47 local time. Residents heard a loud bang and observed ash coming out from the crater. Ash was not seen on satellite data.  The seismic swarm in the Tjörnes Fracture Zone north off Iceland regained some strength the past days. The seismic swarm has now been ongoing for almost 3 weeks. 

After being unusually quiet, two of the volcanoes in the Philippines seem to become more restless:
Mayon volcano has started to show some signs of renewed activity. PHILVOLS has detected a slightly elevated number of quakes and weak inflation of parts of the volcanic edifice. The volcano is producing a gas and steam plume. It is not expected to erupt in the near future, but PHILVOLCS recommends a safety distance of 6 km due to the risk of sudeen phreatic explosions and lahars.

Taal volcano has been showing increased CO2 emissions, but otherwise no significant changes in the ongoing weak volcanic unrest. Popocatépetl in Mexico had more than 120 emissions of steam and sometimes small amounts of ash during 9-10 November, in other words more than 3 times what has been reported for most of the previous days. It is unclear whether this is due to better observation circumstances (clearer weather etc.) or reflects a true increase of activity. During 9-10 Nov, Fuego volcano was unusually quiet with only 3 weak explosions. The latest INSIVUMEH report also mentions the length of the lava flow at only 200 m, which would suggest that effusion rate has dropped a lot (temporarily).

During the past days, also Santiaguito seems to have been calm compared to previous periods. INSIVUMEH reports steaming and a few weak explosions, but states the dome was "calm". A strong thermal anomaly remains visible at Alaid volcano in the Northern Kuriles, Russia. MODIS satellite data continues also to show a hotspot at Heard Island volcano.