Lessons from world-famous volcanoes

There are now 21 active volcanoes out of 200 in the Philippines, according to the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) – Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).

Years ago, then Rep. Lally Laurel Trinidad of Tanauan, Batangas arranged a field trip for my 150 school teachers and personnel to Taal volcano in colorful bancas. Young Phivolcs volcanologists accompanied us to explain the various phenomena of volcanology. We motored from the observatory station to the old and new baby craters of Taal’s blue lake. Batangas province, they say, is the original volcano. Phivolcs maintains observatories in the sites of the country’s currently active volcanoes, which are tourist sites during lull periods.

The new volcanology vocabulary

New volcanology words we have come across due to the Mt. Pinatubo eruption include magma, lava, ash, lahar, pyroclastics, lapilli, caldera. To sort out the mystery of this calamity, let me explain these.

The cross section of the earth reveals the extremely hot “liquid core” rock of the earth, surrounded by the slightly cooler rocks of the “outer core” and the “magma” layer below the surface for the earth. If the “magma” can force its way to the outer shell of the earth, a volcano forms. The depth from which the volcano materials erupt will determine the chemical content of the rocks which are formed.

When the magma emerges, it is called lava. If rich in silica, then it will be sticky or viscous and is referred to as acidic lava. Basic lava has less silica and is more fluid.

Pyroclastics are rocks of several centimeters to particles of dust blown out by the explosion. Lapilli, the large cinders, fall near the crater but the dust particles travel several miles. Volcanic bombs are lumps of liquid lava, blown out of the crater. All products of explosion emerge through a pipe called the vent through the top or crater. Some craters are small, others large, where it is even possible for geologists to camp and study new rocks, just like in Mt. Etna. Large craters are sometimes called calderas. These are volcano peaks, which collapses on itself. One of the biggest is the Crater Lake Oregon, USA – nine kilometers in diameter, 600 meters deep.

Two thirds of all volcanoes exist in the Pacific Ocean

Two-thirds of all volcanoes exist around the edge of the Pacific Ocean in what is called “The Ring of Fire.” This extends from New Zealand through Indonesia (28 active volcanoes), the Philippines (21), Japan (55), the Kamchatka Peninsula (25), the Aleutian Islands (18), Alaska (15), and down the west coast of America to Central America including Mexico (42). The rest of the active volcanoes are Mt. Pelee, the most famous in the West Indies; Vulcano, Mt. Etna and Stromboli, all of which are in Italy in the Mediterranean; Iceland in the mid-Atlantic Ridge and the snow-covered Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa. Even the South Pole contains several volcano peaks, namely Mt. Bird, Terror and Erebus.

Except for the volcanoes in Hawaii and the Canary Islands, all the above volcanoes occur in narrow “belts” or lines on the bottom crust of the earth. This is made up of large plates of rock whose edges buckle up like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, suddenly swelling and failing to fit snugly. As the plates collide, they crumble to form the mountain volcanoes.

If a volcano has no recorded eruption between 4,000 to 5,000 years, then it is extinct. If it has not erupted for many centuries, it would be dormant. Active volcanoes have been erupting within the last 1,000 years. Of the thousand volcanoes on the earth’s surface, 300 to 600 are active. There is a wide range of possible volcanoes since it is difficult to decipher whether a volcano is dormant or active. Besides, large volcanoes tend to develop secondary cones, which may ultimately become bigger than the main crater and later on may be recorded as a new volcano, just like Taal Volcano in Batangas.

Italy

The famous Mt. Vesuvius overlooks the blue bay of Naples in southern Italy. The popular song “Sorrento” was inspired by the island, which was formed by successive historic eruptions. The mountain is 1,180 meters high and has 40-kilometer base. It’s most devastating eruption in 79 AD destroyed the ancient towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

Mt. Etna is located in the island of Sicily, at the bottom of boot-shaped Italy. It is twice as tall, and thrice as wide as Vesuvius with a populace of half a million. Mt. Etna erupted 17 times in the 18th century, 19 times in the 19th century, and thus far, eight times in the 20th century. The eruptions enlarged the volcano. Its most devastating period was in 1669 when lava from Monte Rossi, one of 300 subsidiary cones, covered Catania province.

Because the mountain is so high, the climate varies. Along the Mediterranean coastline, below 700 meters, farmers grow lemons and oranges. Higher than 500 meters are vineyards. The higher portion, strangely, is snow covered. This is because rock is a poor conductor of heat. Thus, the subterranean warmth cannot melt the snow. During winter the 1,500 meter slopes are used for skiing.

Indonesia

Krakatoa is a small island located between Indonesia’s two largest islands — Sumatra (larger than Mindanao) and Java. In 1883, the volcano’s vast explosion blew off two–thirds of the small, uninhibited island. Gases and lava spewed 16 kilometers into the air. The ash spread 770,000 square kilometers, and there was darkness for 2 ½ days. Muddy rain fell on Jakarta, the capital city of Java, where 70 percent of the people reside. The main explosion at 10 a.m. on August 27 was heard 3,200 kilometers away in central Australia at 2 p.m.

The tidal wave exceeded 35 meters and reached Africa. Some 295 villages in Java and Sumatra were flooded. A Dutch warship was carried nearly three kilometers up a valley, and about 36,000 people were killed.

The Caribbean Isles

One of the most sudden and dramatic volcanic eruptions was that of Mt. Pelee in 1902. Situated against the prosperous sugar plantation communities of St. Pierre and Martinique in the Caribbean Isles, the volcano was affectionately called “Papa Pelee”. Sunday picnics were held on its summit, which for half century had been dormant.

Lulled by the idyllic island calmness, the Pierrotins ignored Pelee’s warnings. Weeks before, it spewed ash and black smoke. The fumes were so thick, people traveled with kerchiefs over their faces. Horses suffocated on the streets, earthquakes shook the island daily, and thunder rolled in deep. Many would have evacuated, but the governor dramatically moved his family from the capital of Fort de France into St. Pierre.

On the morning of May 8, 1902, Mt. Pelee roared a huge incandescent cloud of steam, gases and dust. Within a minute, it engulfed and ruined St. Pierre. All 30,000 people were killed except for one, a prisoner who was locked up in a dungeon cell. Its tiny window protected him from Pelee’s death cloud.

Japan’s public safety program for calamities

Ten years later, a community in Japan heeded the warnings of Mt. Sakurajima. The authorities ordered a fleet of sampans into the harbor to evacuate some 23,000 people. The following day, the volcano had one of the most massive eruptions in Japanese history. Having escaped its fury the people returned, and today their children and grandchildren till fertile new fields that cover the old ones. Though foiled, Sakurajima has held no grudge.

Accustomed to daily earthquakes (the more turbulent ones accompanied by fire) and frequent tsunamis, the Japanese have trained whole communities to respond to the danger signs. The whole town has evacuation drills with the Mayor, his counselors, public health and safety authorities.

They know what to do as soon as the public siren wails. Housewives switch off electricity and electronic devices, and lock windows and doors. With barely any baggage, women and children form a chain, holding on to official bright colored ropes. Guides silently and quickly lead them to safe places. Trucks ply the major streets barking “last calls” to laggards.

Storms, earthquakes forest fires and drought are increasing in intensity and destruction. Like the pattern of tides in which there is ebb and flow, there is also a lull in natural disasters but this should not give us the false illusion of safety.

Mary’s message to the world

Since spiritual prediction includes the likelihood of the earth turning on its axis, thus creating vast changes over many continents and oceans, the World Mother’s message is the following:

“Residents of planet Earth, heed these warnings. You are living in perilous times. Now is the time to come in God with an open heart and mind, filled to capacity with the Hope of God. This will be the only way to endure the trying times, which you face. Far too long have you ignored all calls to return to your original goal. Far too long have you turned your backs on the spiritual element. The last few years of this century will bring many upheavals to those on Earth.”

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