Australia 2 – Volcanic Activity in Northern and Central Queensland

Volcanic fields and provinces in Queensland. Image screen capture courtesy Jones Thesis 2018, Evolution and migration of Cenozoic Australia.

 

I originally intended to cover all volcanic fields and provinces I could find in Queensland.  Turns out there were a lot of them, so many that the post grew too large.  Will limit this post to northern and central Queensland, and bundle southern Queensland with New South Wales in Part 3, the next post.  With that being said, let’s take a look at Queensland.

Advertisements

TINAKULA 🇸🇧 – New Photos & Update

(© Ryszard Chajęcki, R/V Petrel)

In our post about Tinakula’s October 2017 eruption I wrote: “This island is so remote that exiting news of an eruption may come through within a few days, but we will probably never learn when, how, or if at all the eruption has ended.”

Well, officially the eruption seems to have ended on 26 October 2017, as listed by the GVP. However, National Situation Reports by the NDMO appeared up into the first week of November; a volcanic assessment on Tinakula on Nov. 5 showed numerous eruptions

Volcanoes of Peru 5: NEVADO COROPUNA

Volcano Coropuna is Peru’s largest and highest volcano and is part of the Cordillera de Ampato. 6/2015. (© Huaylas te Invita, via Wikimedia). The view is – my educated guess – from the SW via Laguna Pallarcocha in the foreground.

At the end of last year Peruvian volcanologists had made an announcement that installing a permanent monitoring system to this high-risk volcano was finished… wait, high risk?… I never knew that Nevado Coropuna was that dangerous, more reason to get acquainted with this volcano. Please meet my newest friend:

Flank Collapse at Anak Krakatau, Dec. 22, 2018

Anak Krakatau a week following flank collapse eruption Dec. 22. The vent region has not yet been rebuilt above water level. Highest remaining part of the island is the hyaloclastic ring that used to host the most recent cone. Note also the island has been resurfaced and grown a bit. Image courtesy BBC News, Jan. 3 https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-46743362https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-46743362

Kunlun Volcanic Group, China

Yutian volcano in Kunlun Volcanic Group. Image courtesy China Whisperer. http://www.chinawhisper.com/top-6-chinas-amazing-volcanoes/

If it Wasn’t for Science, we Might Never have Known – MAYOTTE (🇾🇹) EQs

Aerial view of Mayotte: Petite Terre, with Grande-Terre in the background. Aug. 2018. (© Gil40100, via tripadvisor.com)

On the morning of November 11, just before 9:30 UTC, many seismographs around the world began scribbling a strange signal that looked only remotely like a normal earthquake. Someone spotted it, and it didn’t take long until, in the social media, tinhattery boiled over the rim and attention-seekers had a heyday.

The M7.0 Anchorage Earthquake of 2018

Minnesota offramp. There is a marshy area off the photo to the right (west). Soil liquefied underneath the road fill and it moved. Vehicle was recovered intact. Driver was not harmed. Image courtesy ADN. https://www.adn.com/tag/11-30-18-alaska-earthquake/

What’s she up to? – Vn. LASTARRIA (Chile)

“At times, the path is well-marked, but it crosses and intersects with many more that lead nowhere…” 2007 (© Jorge Alonso, via viajeros4x4.com). Approaching Volcán Lastarria from the NW.

GVP said in 2007: “The rarely visited Lastarria has not erupted in historical time, but has displayed strong fumarolic activity for at least 67 years. This is the first Bulletin report ever issued on this volcano; it presents new images of the steaming edifice…”

Not that the volcano wasn’t known as such – persistent fumarolic activity has been reported from the northwestern flanks since the earliest records were made. However, even the most recent eruptions appear to have predated the Spanish colonists: no records of large or small eruptions have ever been found. Yet, in 1900, Dr. L. Darapsky said “Lastarria volcano… is the only one in the district which shows signs of volcanic activity,

Dome Inflation at Kikai Caldera, Japan

Satsuma Iojima Island on the rim of the Kikai Caldera. Iojima rhyolite dome is at the upper right. Inamura scoria cone is midway between the peninsula at the lower right and Iojima. Photo courtesy Getty via The Sun. https://www.thesun.co.uk/tech/5572129/underwater-supervolcano-eruption-kill-100-million-people-japan-lava-dome-science/

NISYROS – (re-)Visited

Nisyros: Caldera view from above Nikia village.

So far, when I wrote about volcanoes around the world, I could only dream of ever visiting them. Researching for my first Nisyros post, though, it occurred to me that the idea of a short holiday there was not entirely out-of-bounds. It didn’t take long and I had convinced daughter & granddaughter to come with me. We travelled to Nisyros in October, and, what can I say – it was a wonderful, if too short a holiday! Here are some impressions, thoughts and photos from our visit.