The Eruption of Mount Pinatubo - Case Study - Geography

The volcano had been dormant for hundreds of years and this violent explosion lasted days, sending ash into the atmosphere (D'arcy Wood). At the time, there were both native villagers living in the area and British officers, as the area was a colony under the British crown. Most of the surviving records of the explosion come from these British officers, some of whom didn’t actually witness the explosion but heard it and assumed the explosion was from rebels on the island. A captain of a nearby East India Company ship reported ash falling out of the sky and “By noon, the light that had remained in the eastern part of the horizon disappeared, and complete darkness had covered the face of day” (D'arcy Wood). At the time of the explosion another British subject, Sir Thomas Raffles, was the governor of Java, Indonesia. His compiled record of first hand accounts confirming the blackened sky and falling ash (Skulls). Similar accounts of darkness were recorded throughout the region, which was due to the sheer volume of ash that was released by the volcano. The ash-blackened sky was not the only impact of the eruption. The more far reaching effects of the eruption would not be felt until the summer of 1816, when the eruption gasses and particles so affected worldwide meteorological patterns that the western world called 1816 “The Year Without a Summer”.

With no prolonged periods of inactivity the volcano has continuously built up on itself. The last major eruption took place in 1790 and killed many people and animals, but numbers are unknown4. Starting in 1983 there was a chain of several eruptions that started and have yet to stop pushing lava through a lava tube till it reaches the Pacific Ocean. Over a span of twenty year the flow has

Volcanos are deadly, can form on islands or mainland, and can destroy mountains and cities. Volcanos commonly form from holes in the earth containing magma. When pressure builds up in these magma chambers, they explode resulting in magma and rock catapulting out into the air. As these volcanoes repeatedly explode, they leak magma, which runs down the side of the volcano. Eventually, the lava cools and transforms into solid rock, building up the volcano to mountain size. An example of giant volcanic eruptions is the Pompeii disaster in 79AD, when Mount Vesuvius erupted and destroyed all of Pompeii. Another example includes, the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens in Washington state, which destroyed the whole mountain. Volcanos

A human factor that would cause differences in the hazards posed by volcanoes is settlement, which includes where people chose to live in relation to a volcano. For example, in Indonesia many people settle near Mount Merapi because of the rich and fertile soil favoured for farming. As Indonesia is a poor country many people rely on subsistence farming, therefore are willing to risk everything by settling beside a volcano. Furthermore, in the last eruption in 2010 360,000 people were displaced from their homes, meaning not only did they lose their home but also their livelihood; hundreds also lost their lives. Therefore, the hazards posed could have been minimalised if people chose to settle elsewhere.

● This was the first time this type of volcano eruption was actually witnessed and

Consequently, it would have led to contamination of the water and the spread of disease. 230 square miles of forest burned and got destroyed. This would have a great effect on the logging industry because there would not be as many trees for them to cut down. In addition to this it would have a great effect on wildlife as 1000s of animals' homes would have been destroyed. It destroyed or extensively damaged over 200 homes, destroyed/ damaged 185 miles (300 km) of road and destroyed/ damaged 15 miles of railways. Airports closed (from 2days → 2 weeks). Over a thousand commercial flights were cancelled following airport closures. Lastly, unemployment rose rapidly after eruption.

After more then 40,000 years of activity, one would expect that people would no longer live in the surrounding shadow of Mt. St. Helens. But regardless, many towns and cities sit inside of a zone that would face destruction if a large eruption took place. In 1980 Mt. St. Helens erupted and caused the loss of many lives and the destruction of thousands of miles of land and property. Following the eruption, the volcano has stayed extremely active. In 2004 it erupted again, building a new lava dome and sending ash and steam into the atmosphere. Since then, seismologists and volcanologists have recently discovered pockets of magma rising and that another eruption may occur soon. Even though the people of Washington know that an eruption could cause widespread devastation they continue with their lives, doing little to prepare for the potential disaster.

The blast was preceded by two months of intense activity that included over 10,000 earthquakes, hundreds of small phreatic (steam blasts) , explosions and the north side bulge. A magnitude 5.1 earthquake below the volcano at 8:32 am started the eruption. MSH is still a potentially dangerous and active volcano even though it has been quiet since 1995. In the last 515 years there have been four major eruptions and dozens of lesser eruptions. Two of the eruptions were only two years apart. In 1480, the eruption was about five times larger than the one in May 1980. There have been even larger eruptions during MSH' 50,000 year lifetime. After the May 18, 1980 eruption, there have been five smaller explosive eruptions over a five month period. Since then, there have been 16 dome building eruptions through October 1986 when the new dome in the crater was formed. As the mountain was torn open, the pressure in inside was suddenly relieved. The rock shattered inside the mountain was exploded out the top at speeds over 200 miles per hour. The blast was so strong that it leveled whole forest of fir trees. Geologist call this a "stone wind" since the winds carried the rocks form the blast with them. The rocks gave the winds extra force that let them flatten the trees. 150 square miles of land was leveled. The edges of this area also lost their forested areas from the heat of the blast and the fires it caused. The original blast of the

The first cautionary signs start at 6:12pm ​yesterday evening. At time when a tower of black ​smoke was speckled over the volcano. Suddenly, a wave of remains of burning ash, rocks and gasses ​start to fall down over the North

There is no recent activity known at glacier peak. Although some hot springs can be found.

This Hawaii Volcano has erupted 33 times since 1843. Its most recent eruption was in 1984. The 1984 eruption lasted from March 25 to April 15. Before the eruption, increasing seismic activity could be felt on the island. During the eruption, many lava flows were produced, but fortunately, no lava reached the city of Hilo (“1984 Eruption”). There is a high likelihood that Mauna Loa will erupt again someday, so the volcano is closely monitored.

The term “supereruption” was introduced after the Toba eruption in 1992 to describe the devastating effects that occurred5. To this date, there is no strict definition however; an eruption that can produce over 300 cubic kilometers of magma would have global consequences and therefore, be considered ‘super’6. The volume of magma that erupted from Toba was much greater than any other eruption previously recorded2. The fragmental deposit from such a large eruption can produce volumes of 1000km3 or greater7. Therefore, according to this definition, the latest eruption of Toba can definitely be considered a supereruption.

In April of 1815, the Tambora Volcano produced one of that largest volcanic eruptions of all time and caused mass devastation around the world. In the evening April 5, 1815 the Tambora Volcano, located on the north coast of Sumbawa Island, Indonesia erupted, killing tens of thousands of people as well as creating climatic aftermath that affected the world for years to come. The Tambora volcano eruption was one of the largest of all time, affecting the people around it, climate change, and art as well as the literature of the time. When looking into the 1815 eruption of the Tambora volcano the first thing a person should research is the effects it had on the people in surrounding areas.

When a volcanic eruption takes place, it releases carbon dioxide and aerosols such as ash particles and sulphur dioxide into a layer of the earth’s atmosphere known as the stratosphere. The aerosols include substances such as soot, salt crystals, viruses, soot and bacteria. While the release of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide contributes to global warming, substances such as ash particles and sulphur dioxide building up in the stratosphere absorb and reflect the sunlight, making the earth a colder place. According to the British Geological Survey and the UN Geological Survey, around 100 to 300 million tonnes of carbon dioxide are released from land based and underwater volcanic eruptions. The eruption of Mount Pinatubo in June 15, 1991 was

In these eruptions, instead of the mixture of gas and ash flowing upwards, it flows outwards and hugs the ground. These eruptions are extremely dangerous.