Last week Mount Sinabung, an active volcano on the island of Sumatra (Indonesia), erupted killing at least 16 people. It is reported that a number of the deaths were people going back into the evacuated zone to see the eruption up close and to check on properties and land. This is a sad reminder of the power of volcanic processes and their lethal potential (see the images on the BBC News), partic ...[Read More]
Friday Photo (105): Blog Competition Best Image
GfGD Blog Competition 2013 – Best Image The town of Banos de Agua Santa (Ecuador), in the foothills of the active volcano Tungurahua. Credit: David Litchfield, University College London
Friday Photo (101): Image Competition – Highly Commended
As part of our Blog Competition 2013 we asked you to submit your favourite photos of geoscience in action. Rick Wall, who has just completed a PhD in volcanology at UCL, entered this image from his field work in Alaska. The entry was highly commended by our judging panel. The photo shows the location of the 1912 Novarupta eruption in Katmai, Alaska. This eruption produced about ∼30 cubic ki ...[Read More]
Volcanic and Biological Hotspots
Geology for Global Development followed Professor Iain Stewart’s BBC two TV series (June 2013), ‘Rise of the Continents‘ with interest. In the first episode, Iain mentioned something that really caught our attention – the strange volcanoes along the East African rift valley and their effect on soils and wildlife. Each year, as the rainy season transforms the Serengeti, a n ...[Read More]