Washington (HDW) November 10, 2004 –The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported yesterday
that growth of a new lava dome inside the crater of Mount St. Helens continued,
and is being accompanied by intermittent emissions of steam and ash. As
long as this eruption is in progress, episodic changes in the level of
activity can occur over days, weeks, or even months. Increase in the intensity
of eruption could occur suddenly or with very little warning and may include
explosive events that produce hazardous conditions within several miles
of the volcano. The picture above, obtained by the USGS, shows the smoke
rising from the red molten lava within this powerful volcano. (full
article...)
Iceland (HDW) November 5, 2004 -Iceland’s
Grimsvotn Volcano began erupting on November 2, 2004, forcing officials
to divert air traffic from the region to prevent ash from damaging aircraft
engines. The volcano sits beneath the Vatnajokull Ice Cap, Europe’s
largest glacier, and is Iceland’s most frequently active volcano.
This eruption may be connected to the draining of a glacier lake in the
volcano’s caldera. Buried under a 200-meter thick ice shelf, the
lake is under extreme pressure. Melting water fills the lake, and when
levels are high enough, the water lifts the ice dam, draining the lake.
Grimsvotn Lake drained in mid-October, lifting some of the pressure from
the volcano. The flood was followed by a series of earthquakes, and on
November 2, an eruption. As of November 3, the eruption was still occurring,
and ash was reported to have drifted as far northeast as Finland. (full
article...)
California (HDW) November 5, 2004 -A powerful Alaskan storm swept over California
during the final week of October, drenching the state with record rain
and snow. The storm was the second large storm to move over California
in as many weeks, and it left the Sierra Nevada Mountains coated in snow.
In this picture taken by a NASA satellite on October 31, 2004, snow highlights
the peaks of the long mountain chain that forms California’s eastern
border with Nevada. The Sierra Nevada mountains have received a lot of
snow in October. Ski resorts may be able to open earlier near Northern
California and Nevada this year. (full article...)
New Guinea (HDW) November 1, 2004 -Even though eyes in the United States of America
are focused on the eruptions of a volcano at Mount St. Helens in Washington
State, there is an even more active volcano that is showing its beauty
and power in the South Pacific. The island of Manam sits in the Bismarck
Sea across the Stephan Strait from the east coast of mainland Papua New
Guinea. Only 10 kilometers wide, the island results from the activity
of the Manam Volcano, one of the New Guinea’s most active. In this
image from a NASA satellite, a large ash plume spreads northwestward after
the eruption of Manam, located at bottom right. The thermally active areas
on the volcano are outlined in red. (full
article...)
Volcano
in Iceland Disrupts Air Travel with Massive Eruption
Skiing
Time in California: Record Snow Storm Hits Sierra Nevadas
Manam
Volcano in Pacific Erupts in Awesome Beauty
