Since 17 July, 9639 earthquakes with epicentres both North and South of the NW Ridge and depths between 10 and 15 km have been recorded. Hierro, a shield volcano, has had a single historic eruption from the Volcan de Lomo Negro vent in 1793. The eruption lasted approximately one month and produced lava flows. The recent surge in the number and intensity of earthquakes prompted officials from the IGN and The Canary Islands Government to raise the alert level for the Hierro volcano to ‘Yellow’ late last month. The alert remained in place on Friday. Magma is now on the move upwards while the depth of earthquakes has become increasingly shallow in recent days with most being recorded at a depth of 9 to 14 kilometres. Movement of magma towards the surface signifies that a volcanic eruption is likely to happen, but the timing of such remains unclear. Any eruption on El Hierro would most likely have a “low explosion value”. (maps & links)
Simple can be harder than complex:
You have to work hard to get your thinking clean
to make it simple.
But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there,
you can move mountains.**
Steve Jobs
LARGEST QUAKES -
This morning -
5.2 MARIANA ISLANDS REGION
Yesterday -
10/8/11 -
5.6 NEAR S COAST OF PAPUA, INDONESIA
5.0 FOX ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS
5.9 TONGA
5.0 SALTA, ARGENTINA
CANARY ISLANDS - 11 total, largest 4.3.
10/7/11 -
5.0 RYUKYU ISLANDS, JAPAN
5.2 HOKKAIDO, JAPAN REGION
5.0 KURIL ISLANDS
5.4 SOUTH OF KERMADEC ISLANDS
6.1 SOUTH OF KERMADEC ISLANDS
5.5 SOUTHEAST OF LOYALTY ISLANDS
CANARY ISLANDS - 23 total, largest 3.7
VOLCANOES -
ITALY - Airport Crisis Unit meets following Etna's latest eruption. The crisis unit is meeting to decide whether Catania airport should stay open following Etna's latest eruption. The Italian National Institute for Geophysics and Volcanology reports that as of 10 am, there has been Strombolian activity in the south-east crater; the activity was initially weak but grew in intensity as the hours went by. At 3,000 meters, lava flow is abundant and a huge ash plume can be seen, heading south.
ALASKA - Lava has reached the edge of a crater in a volcano in Alaska's remote Aleutian Islands, indicating the mountain could explode and send up an ash cloud that could threaten aircraft. The Alaska Volcano Observatory says satellite images show lava at the edge of the crater rim of 5,675-foot Cleveland Mountain on uninhabited on Chuginadak Island, about 940 miles southwest of Anchorage. Volcano monitors say if the dome continues to grow, it could overflow the rim and increase the possibility of an explosion. The observatory says an eruption could send up an ash cloud 20,000 feet or more. The nearest village, Nikolski, is on another island about 50 miles east and has 18 permanent residents. The village was not considered in harm’s way in previous eruptions of the volcano.
Exclusion Zone Set Up Around Indonesia's Anak Krakatau (Child of Krakatoa) - Indonesia's Volcanology and Geology Disaster Mitigation Centre has expressed concern that an eruption could send incandescent rocks down its slopes and a considerable distance into surrounding waters.
TROPICAL STORMS -
In the Atlantic -
-Post-tropical cyclone Philippe was located about 915 mi (1475 km) W of the Azores.
In the Pacific -
-Category 1 Hurricane Jova was located about 405 mi. (655 km) SW of Manzanillo, Mexico. Watches may be required for portions of the southwestern coast of Mexico today.
-Tropical storm Irwin was located about 885 mi. (1425 km) SW of the southern tip of Baja California.
New tropical storm could develop near Florida - A strong storm - potentially Tropical Storm Rina - is forecast to develop near Florida over the weekend and possibly move up the Southeast coast and then toward portions of the flood-ravaged Mid-Atlantic and Northeast by the middle of next week. Even before this storm forms, heavy rain, beach erosion and deadly rip currents were forecast in Florida on Friday and throughout the weekend, thanks to strong winds circulating around an area of high pressure in the Atlantic.
Although the storm had yet to develop as of late Thursday, all reliable computer models are indicating that a storm will eventually develop somewhere near Florida. The storm is most likely to form today, and may or may not be tropical in nature. If it becomes Rina, it would be the 17th named storm of the 2011 Atlantic hurricane season. A typical season has 11 named storms.
The system could be what’s known as a “subtropical” storm, which is a low-pressure area that has characteristics of both tropical and non-tropical storms. Subtropical storms are named just as tropical storms and hurricanes. The storm would form along a stalled frontal boundary just off the Southeast coast. This is very common in October. The northwest Caribbean is a prime area for tropical storm development this time of year. It is too early to determine the exact path of the system, as well as the magnitude of its impacts. However, “as we move farther into next week, we can’t rule out another Northeast event."
Hurricane Philippe developed far out in the Atlantic Ocean Thursday morning. It was the fifth hurricane of the Atlantic season, which lasts until Nov. 30. It was not forecast to affect any land areas. Also, most of the western USA will get a weather break over the weekend as the big early fall storm that dropped rain and snow from California to Colorado fizzles out over the Plains. Some parts of the Sierra Nevada mountains in California received more than 2 feet of snow, while Los Angeles got more than an inch of rain Wednesday, a record for the date.
Tropical Storms Jova and Irwin May Threaten Mexico Next Week - Tropical Storm Jova [now a hurricane] joined Irwin in the eastern Pacific, threatening landfall on Mexico's western coast early next week, while Hurricane Philippe moved away from land in the Atlantic.
