Volcanos, features and articles | Educational Science

Mar 31, 2005

Warning: Dangerous U.S. Volcanoes Not Properly Monitored

Dangerous volcanoes in six states are not adequately monitored, U.S. Geological Survey officials said Friday. The agency called for a new nationwide warning system. Geologists conducted a new survey of the 169 known U.S. volcanoes and ranked them according to their threat to human life, property and aviation safety. Alaska,...

Feb 28, 2005

Rumbling Alaskan Volcano Prompts Warning

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) -- Volcanic rumblings at Mount Spurr are creating hazardous conditions for extreme skiers, snowboarders and pilots landing in the area, the Alaska Volcano Observatory said Friday. Possible dangers include unstable snow and ice, higher concentrations of potentially lethal gases and acidic water that could be strong enough...

Feb 28, 2005

New Volcano Threat: Just When You Think It's Safe ...

When a volcano blows and you think you're safe by the sea after the main event subsides, watch your back. That's the message in a new study of an eruption in the Caribbean. The research confirmed what scientists had expected, and the scenario is a bit frightening. The Soufriere Hills...

Jan 31, 2005

Hawaii Lava Splashes into the Sea

Earlier this week, the Kilauea volcano began dripping molten rock into the Pacific at two new sites in Hawaii National Park. One of the new spots is about a mile and a half from a ranger station. Park visitors are being treated to a spectacle as the flows, at 2,100...

Nov 30, 2006

How to Super-Size a Volcanic Eruption

SAN FRANCISCO--Super eruptions that blast loads of ash sky high can change the climate. Now scientists are finding that the relationship could go both ways with the climate having an impact on huge volcanic eruptions. A bone-dry climate, which occurs in periods between ice ages, could make conditions just right...

Oct 31, 2006

Faraway Volcanoes Shrunk the Mighty Nile

Volcanic eruptions on Iceland generated a cascade of events that led to record low levels of water in the Nile River in Africa and brought famine to the region more than two centuries ago, a new study concludes. The findings will inform climate forecasting related to future volcanic activity. From...

Mar 31, 2006

Olive Branch Buried by Volcano Revises History

The discovery of an olive branch buried in volcanic ash for centuries is helping scientists pinpoint the date of one of the most powerful volcanic eruptions in the last 10,000 years. The finding could force archeologists to revise historical timelines for civilizations inhabiting the Mediterranean basin during the Late Bronze...

Feb 28, 2006

New Type of Volcanic Hazard Discovered

Scientists have uncovered a new type of worrisome volcanic eruption after studying images of an odd-shaped ash plume that came unexpectedly crashing down. Typically, the gentlest part of a volcanic eruption is the gradual falling of ash. But the plummeting plume of an eruption in South America four years ago...

Oct 31, 2007

Yellowstone Volcano Rises at Unprecedented Rate

Yellowstone’s ancient volcanic floor has been rising since mid-2004 because a blob of molten rock the size of Los Angeles infiltrated the system 6 miles beneath the surface, scientists say, but there is no risk of an eruption. Yellowstone National Park is the site of North America's largest volcanic field,...

Jul 31, 2007

Take a Deep Breath, and Thank a Volcano

Volcanoes are partly to thank for the air you’re breathing right now, a new study shows. Billions of years ago, Earth had very little oxygen in its atmosphere, in part because most of the volcanoes on our planet were undersea. The mixture of gases and lavas that erupted from these...

Dec 31, 2006

Drilling Caused Deadly 'Mud Volcano'

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) -- A mud volcano that inundated dozens of villages was probably triggered by commercial gas drilling, research published in a respected scientific journal shows, contradicting an Indonesian government minister who insists it was a natural disaster. It is very likely'' that the mud flow on the island...

May 31, 2008

Volcanoes Erupt Beneath Arctic Ice

New evidence deep beneath the Arctic ice suggests a series of underwater volcanoes have erupted in violent explosions in the past decade. Hidden 2.5 miles (4,000 meters) beneath the Arctic surface, the volcanoes are up to a mile (2,000 meters) in diameter and a few hundred yards tall. They formed...

Dec 31, 2007

Buried Volcano Discovered in Antarctica

A volcano beneath Antarctica’s icy surface has been detected for the first time. Under the frozen continent's western-most ice sheet, the volcano erupted about 2,300 years ago yet remains active, according to a study published Sunday in an online issue of the journal Nature Geosciences. We believe this was the...

Sep 30, 2009

Volcanic Eruptions Caused Ancient Warming And Cooling

Volcanic eruptions were responsible for a deadly ice age 450 million years ago, as well as — in an ironic twist — a period of global warming that preceded it, a new study finds. The finding underscores the importance of carbon in Earth's climate today, said study researcher Matthew Saltzman...

Jul 31, 2009

NASA Drops Probes Into Volatile Volcano

High-tech sensor pods were recently air lifted into the mouth of a volcano to monitor hot spots and provide early warning if the peak starts to blow. The sensors are part of a NASA project to study volcanoes from the inside. On July 14 scientists lowered the pods into the...