This week we couldn’t just stick to one “Science Snap” so we went for four – one from each of the contributors! We’ve all chosen a volcano dear to our hearts being ones we’ve either visited or studied.
- James: The giant Uturuncu volcano in southern Bolivia has been slowly uplifting for over 45 years. High-precision GPS and micro-gravimetry in the foreground are being used to monitor the volcano and better understand the subsurface dynamics driving its expansion. This photo was taken during fieldwork in 2012. Credit: James Hickey
Mel: This is a photo of Sakura-jima volcano, which sits in the Aira caldera of Kyushu island, the most southwesterly of Japan’s four main islands. The photo was taken aboard the Sakura-jima ferry in July 2013, sailing west away from the volcano towards Kagoshima city, 8km away. Sakura-jima is one of Japan’s most active volcanoes and frequently deposits ash on Kagoshima city. The volcano is a composite stratovolcano with three summit cones positioned in a north-south orientation that can be observed in the photograph. The oldest cone, Kita-dake, is the most northerly (left hand side of the photograph) and the volcano’s highest point, rising to 1,117m. The most southerly cone, Minami-dake, is the youngest and is currently active (right hand side of the photograph). Naka-dake sits between Kita-dake and Minami-dake. Credit: Mel Auker
Charly: Wai-O-Tapu, New Zealand. Māori for “sacred waters”, the terrestrial hot springs are part of the network of hydrothermal activity around Rotorua. The colourful feature in question is called the ‘Champagne Pool’ due to the constant bubbling outflux of CO2. The vibrant hues are deposits rich in heavy metals. The only thing the photo doesn’t quite capture is the overwhelming fug of rotten eggs! Credit: Charly Stamper
Elspeth: The explosive phase of the eruption of Chaitén, Chile in May 2008 deposited ash across a wide area of northern Patagonia, and provided a rare opportunity to characterise a freshly fallen distal ashfall deposit. At the time, this was the first major ash fallout event across southern Chile and Argentina since the Hudson 1991 eruption. This is a Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) image from NASA’s Terra satellite showing the ash-rich volcanic plume heading east, crossing over Argentina into the Atlantic. Credit: NASA
