Icelandic volcano 'set to erupt

GJ02 · 10 Feb 2011 at 14:57

Scientists in Iceland are warning that another volcano looks set to erupt and threatening to spew-out a pall of dust that would dwarf last year's event.

Geologists detected the high risk of a new eruption after evaluating an increased swarm of earthquakes around the island's second largest volcano.

Pall Einarsson, a professor of geophysics at the University of Iceland, says the area around Bárdarbunga is showing signs of increased activity, which provides "good reason to worry".

He told the country's national TV station that a low number of seismometer measuring devices in the area is making it more difficult to determine the scale and likely outcome of the current shifts.

But he said there was "every reason to worry" as the sustained earthquake tremors to the north east of the remote volcano range are the strongest recorded in recent times and there was "no doubt" the lava was rising.

The geologist complained that the lack of coverage from measuring devices means he cannot accurately detect the depth and exact location of the increased number of localised earth movements.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/iceland/8311924/Icelandic-volcano-set-to-erupt.html

Brian8bit · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:01

Isn't there one in Russia that's gone off recently? Also one in Japan that's gone off and there's a super volcano under Naples and one under Yellowstone too. I love nature. I like her because when humanity gets a little too comfortable, she comes along and ****s everyones **** up just to remind them that we aren't really at the top of the food chain.

redrooster303 · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:02

So does this mean we'll have massive ash clouds like last time and there'll be no flights etc.

willhub · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:04

Well it's sounds like it'll be worse than last time. If a super volcano erupted like Yellowstone we'd all die, it'd almost cause the extinction of the humans race.

Cosimo · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:05

redrooster303 said:
So does this mean we'll have massive ash clouds like last time and there'll be no flights etc.

Call, heads or tails?

apatia77 · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:05

Bring it on!!!! Humanity doesn't deserve to live.

agnes · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:06

Good times

Sp00n · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:07

EVACUATE THE PLANET.

Fenris · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:09

Brian8bit said:
we aren't really at the top of the food chain.

Last time I checked volcanos weren't really that interested in eating us, choking us to death or setting us on fire, maybe burying us alive maybe.

willhub said:
Well it's sounds like it'll be worse than last time. If a super volcano erupted like Yellowstone we'd all die, it'd almost cause the extinction of the humans race.

Yeah, not quite, the chances of a Yellowstone eruption of the type capable of created a world changing event is the least likely, meaning the chances of it happening are minuscule.

Cosimo · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:10

Sp00n said:
EVACUATE THE PLANET.

Cancel your holidays, etc, etc.....

Emlyn_Dewar · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:11

Fenris said:
Last time I checked volcanos weren't really that interested in eating us.

Exactly what they want you to think.
Don't buy in to it man, they're out there, erupting, waiting to eat us. [/tinfoil]

Edit: The story is a bit vague isn't it, sounds like they don't know much at all.

willhub · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:11

Fenris said:
Last time I checked volcanos weren't really that interested in eating us, choking us to death or setting us on fire, maybe burying us alive maybe.

Yeah, not quite, the chances of a Yellowstone eruption of the type capable of created a world changing event is the least likely, meaning the chances of it happening are minuscule.

Last I heard it was 65,000 years overdue!!

Jambo · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:11

I HATE ICELAND!!

Craig1981 · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:11

I call Mars! Nobody else can live there but me!

Scon · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:11

Oh shoot, the end?

Emlyn_Dewar · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:13

*In before start of 2012*

point decay · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:20

had to cancel my hols to NY last year because of this nonsence.

Fenris · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:20

willhub said:
Last I heard it was 65,000 years overdue!!

The last eruption is assumed to have been around 70,000 years ago, this was still a big event but by no means as dramatic as people claim.

Yellowstone has has 3 "super eruptions" (the ones that cause a Caldera) within the last 2.1 million years, 2.1 million, 1.3 million and 640,000 ago, meaning around 7-800,000 years between each eruption, so theoretically it could be anywhere up to 100,000 years before any sort of super eruption, if it even happens.

Currently the magma chamber under Yellowstone is around 10Km underground, according to most geologists, we would only need to be very worried if it was under half that.

(Info taken from wiki and various articles, I'm not a geologist or a scientist, this stuff just interests me)

LordSplodge · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:22

willhub said:
Well it's sounds like it'll be worse than last time. If a super volcano erupted like Yellowstone we'd all die, it'd almost cause the extinction of the humans race.

It's overdue as well.

However I think some of the human race would survive. We have had catastrophic events in the past and went down to a few thousand humans at one point...

Sp00n said:
EVACUATE THE PLANET.

Well keeping all our eggs in one basket is never a good idea. We should have been off world by now...

Antar Bolaeisk · 10 Feb 2011 at 15:22

So is this the big one then, bloody well better be. Waited all last year for it to erupt after eyjakerwaffle and it never went. Damn well inconsiderate of it if you ask me :mad: