We hope you have enjoyed this April-1 story. Yes, this was completely made-up and as of this morning the blue lagoon is again blue and normal service has resumed. The story was designed by Lughduniense who also made the tourism poster which we happily donate to Iceland under a CC-by-4.0 license. Join us next year…
We owe our existence to our ever-changing and yet passive climate. Unlike other planets in the universe, here it doesn’t rain molten glass or frozen acid, nor does it have super sonic winds destroying everything in its path. However, the climate isn’t without fault as it is sensitive to very small changes with atmospheric composition.…
Republished from https://roseannechambers.com, with kind permission by the author. It is a blog we happily recommend to our readers! In the recent geologic history of the Grand Canyon, volcanoes erupted in the Colorado River channel and on the rim, pouring lava over the canyon walls. Hot lava often flowed down the river channel for tens…
There are so many volcanoes right now that have the size and history to produce a massive eruption but only one volcano has me worried for the imminent future and you’ve heard it’s name before, Chiles-Cerro Negro. As of late Chile-Cerro Negro has been having a massive swarm with accelerating deformation which has caught some…
This is the last part of my article series, and it will be about the most complicated stuff: a look at the behaviour of Nyiragongo’s lava and how fluid it really is. In part three we had a look at how unusual its low silica magma chemistry is, and how this led to the famous…
Introduction In part one I took a close look at the large scale forces that drive volcanism in Africa, at continental rifting in its different stages and the types of magma chemistry that form because of it. I also discussed the origin of the forces that created Nyiragongo and Virunga in the first place. In…
Nyiragongo history of activity and nature of its eruptive activity (See here for Part I) Nyiragongo’s beautiful steep cone, encased in its unsettling night glow, towers over the densely populated Kivu region that is home to millions of people. The volcanic edifice itself measures around 13 kilometers wide and rises to 3470 meters above lake…
Introduction Nyiragongo is one of my favourite volcanoes and one of the most peculiar and most unusual of all active volcanoes on this planet. It’s also a very problematic volcano, close to a huge population center that is rapidly growing, and there is a lot of risks associated with its volcanism as well as with…
We are happy to continue our tradition of April-1 stories that are almost true. Some of the science is correct – although we do NOT recommend sulphur-sniffing! April-1 should be a time of happiness. If you would like to re-read our previous ‘almost true’ stories The Sicilian affair Iceland eruption postponement Lava lake to provide…
Lanzarote ranks as one of the most obviously volcanic places on the planet. The island is covered with craters, cones and lava fields. The dry and frost-free climate means that volcanic features weather only slowly, and vegetation has had a hard time gaining any meaningful foothold on the land. The cones and lava go back…