Powerful volcanic eruptions. The strongest volcanic eruptions - historical facts

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In the middle of June this year, 20 years have passed since the catastrophic eruption of the Pinatubo Volcano, as a result of which a huge amount of ash was thrown into the atmosphere and circled around the globe, leading to a global temperature drop of 0.5 degrees Celsius next year.

As for the volcanoes, he adds that the increase in volcanic activity is due to the intrusion of magma, which creates a higher pressure inside the volcanic building, and this will lead to a change in the activity of the volcano. Sometimes presence of gases is present, and the output from them also generates certain types of signals.

Moncayo emphatically declares that it is impossible to foresee this type of phenomena, although it is possible to establish causal signs that lead to approximations of the probabilities of the event. In modern history, we are considering some of the disasters in which thousands of lives, people and animals were killed, and they led to huge losses in the ecosystem and in the infrastructure created by man.

On this anniversary, we decided to talk about the largest eruptions of volcanoes, measured with the volcanic eruption index (VEI), a classification system similar to the scale of measuring the level of earthquakes.

The system was developed in the 1980s, with its development factors such as the volume of the eruption, its velocity and other quantitative variables taken into account. The scale varies from 1 to 8, with each subsequent VEI 10 times stronger than the previous one.

In these parts of the world, the most terrible natural disasters of recent history occurred

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  This event led to the death of more than a thousand people with an index of volcanic explosiveness. Then there was a tsunami with waves of a height of 12 meters, which devastated part of the island of Sicily and the Italian peninsula. It is estimated that the death toll is greater than any other natural disaster that has been reported. It lasted 14 minutes, and its magnitude was 9, 5 points on the Richter scale, which was the most intense recorded in the history of mankind. In such cases, the information provided by the institutions responsible for its study is fundamental, as well as the state's work on prevention.
  • This phenomenon caused a reduction of almost half of the volcano.
  • The death toll ranges from 1 to 4 million.
The society must be prepared for any natural catastrophe, report it and take the necessary measures within the framework of the possibilities to ensure life and ensure life.

Over the past 10,000 years there have been no volcanic eruptions with an index of 8, however, human history has witnessed several powerful and destructive eruptions. Below are the 10 most powerful volcanic eruptions that have occurred in the last 4000 years.


Wainaputina (Huaynaputina), Peru - 1600, VEI 6

This was the largest volcanic eruption in the history of South America for all time. The explosion provoked the appearance of mudflows, which reached the Pacific Ocean, which was 120 km from the scene. Among other things, it seems that the explosion also affected the global climate. The summer of 1600 was one of the coldest in the previous 500 years. The ashes from the explosion covered everything around in a radius of 50 square kilometers.

He devastated 163 villages, leaving behind more than 1,000 deaths. Figure of the eruption of the volcano Krakatoa. For two years, the suspension of its ash in the atmosphere caused extraordinary optical phenomena throughout the world and helped meteorologists understand the general circulation of the atmosphere.

This explosion was perceived on 10% of the earth's surface, and up to the island of Madagascar and Australia formed a tsunami with waves 40 meters high and an ash cone 80 kilometers high. The waves were so big that they took the warship into the center of the jungle.

Like the 000 atomic bombs of Hiroshima. Such was his energy, that compared to the atomic bomb of Hiroshima, this eruption was a thousand times more powerful. Three years later, observers from around the world described the twilight and brightly lit dawns caused by the refraction of the sun's rays on these tiny particles. Firefighters from New York believed that in the distance fires caused by clouds of incandescence of dust were visible.

Despite the fact that the mountain is quite high (4850 meters), no one expected an eruption from it. It stands on the edge of a deep canyon, and its peak is completely different from the silhouette that is usually associated with possible eruptions. The cataclysm of 1600 damaged the nearby cities of Arequipa and Mokegau, which recovered after the event only a century later.

The thunder of destruction Krakatoa is considered to be the highest recorded sound in history reaching levels of 180 dB. It is said that the sailors, who were at a distance of 40 kilometers, were deaf from the noise. The island was mostly torn off, and for you to get an idea, roughly the surface, like the whole of Manhattan, disappeared without leaving traces.

As the eruption ashes of Krakatoa reached about 80 kilometers of altitude, this ensured its permanence for many years in the stratosphere, a layer over the troposphere and a more stable layer than this one. These are the words of the famous artist Edward Munch, who is said to have been inspired by this volcanic eruption to draw a picture of "El Grito". In this picture you can see the fjord of Oslo in the background of the Ekeberg hill. But how is this possible, if Munch was in Oslo, would he feel the consequences of the eruption that occurred in Indonesia?


Krakatoa (Krakatoa), Sunda Strait, Indonesia, - 1883, VEI 6

The most powerful explosion, which occurred on August 26-27, 1883, was accompanied by loud rumblings for several months. The eruption of this stratovolcano, located along the volcanic island arc in the subduction zone of the Indo-Australian platform, threw out a huge amount of rock, ash and pumice, and it was heard thousands of miles away.

As we mentioned earlier, the eruption effects were not temporary, but lasted for several years, and ashes reached the stratosphere and were redistributed by the globe, hiding the sky of the whole world and creating spectacular sunsets due to refraction of rays. Solar particles in suspended ash particles in the stratosphere. Surely this is what Munch saw, and this inspired him to this highly valued work of art.

Some geologists argue that one day Anak Krakatau will burst even with the same force as the previous volcano. When studying a volcanic eruption, there is a double play of passions. On the one hand, there is amazement for the strength and greatness of the power of nature. And on the other hand, there is an innate fear that accompanies this class of phenomena. This time we will talk about the second.

The explosion also triggered the development of the tsunami, the maximum wave height reached 40 meters, with more than 34,000 dead. Tidal sensors located at a distance of 11,000 km from the Arabian Peninsula even recorded an increase in wave height.

While the island, which until its eruption was Krakatoa's house, was completely destroyed, new eruptions began in December 1927 and provoked the appearance of Anak Krakatau ("Child of Krakatau"), a cone in the center of the caldera, which appeared as a result of the 1883 eruption. Anak Krakatau from time to time comes to himself, reminding everyone of his great parent.

Throughout history, people have documented all the rage left by the volcanoes around them. There were hundreds of catastrophic eruptions that humanity witnessed. Among the oldest of those who have information, there is Vesuvius, who in 79 year. The history of that time says that "the cloud arose without those who looked from afar, could not surely find out which mountain shows an aspect and shape reminiscent of more pine than any other tree." The environmental impact was global in scope, allowing to influence the climate in the poles, where heavy rains were recorded, and caused damage in European collections.


The volcano of Santa Maria, Guatemala - 1902, VEI 6

The eruption of Santa Maria in 1902 was one of the largest eruptions of the 20th century. A strong explosion occurred after almost 500 years of silence, leaving behind a large crater, about 1.5 km in diameter, on the south-western flank of the mountain.

In the same century, Indonesia once again witnessed another major catastrophe. This time in Krakatoa, which in August reached its maximum eruptive stage. This eruption devastated the surrounding flora and fauna, caused a tsunami and instantly paralyzed the movement of ships in the area. There were even reports that rocks like pumice fell in New York.

One of the reasons for the tragic figure was that the strongest eruption occurred at night, when the villagers were in their beds. It was Mount Tambora, Indonesia. It was a gigantic explosion that launched columns of flame 40 km high. About 200 million tons of sulfur dioxide and 50 cubic kilometers of lava poured into the bark. The island of Sumbaia, where the volcano is located, and located 600 km away, was in the dark, covered with ashes. Hurricane pulled home at sea, where a tsunami formed 5 meters high.

A symmetrical, tree-covered volcano is part of the stratovolcano chain that rises along the Pacific plain of the coast of Guatemala. Since the very outbreak of the explosion, the volcano too often began to show its character. Thus, in 1922 an eruption occurred, by the strength of VEI 3, and in 1929, Santa Maria "issued" a pyroclastic flow (rapidly moving and flammable clouds of gas and dust) that killed more than 5,000 people.

Many died, but most were destroyed by hunger and disease. Experts believe that before this eruption Tambor rested about 5000 years. Rain of Fire Currently there are 600 active volcanoes on the planet. What are the types of volcanoes? They can be volcanic buildings or cracks in the earth's crust. The volcanic building is formed by a high embankment with a crater at the top, such as Etna, Vesuvius and Tambora itself. But most volcanoes are cracks in the earth's crust, i.e. large cracks in the land where lava flows, for example, the famous Kilauea in Hawaii.

A volcano is considered active when it exhibits seismic activity and erupted in the last 10,000 years. Potentially active is the one that erupted over 25,000 years, has seismic activity, remains of magma and is geologically young. Inactive does not show any signs of activity and has undergone a change in erosion.


Novarupta, the Alaska Peninsula - June 1912, VEI 6

The eruption of Novarupta, one of the volcanoes of the Alaska Peninsula, part of the Pacific ring of fire, was the largest volcanic explosion of the 20th century. A powerful eruption triggered the release of 12.5 cubic kilometers of magma and ash into the air, which then settled to the ground in a radius of 7800 square kilometers.

How to prevent a serious eruption? What's in the smoke of volcanoes and what can it cause? Depending on the concentration, they can harm the health and the environment. In areas close to the volcano, ash mixed with hot air from the eruption can be fatal to the population, and also destroy plantations and pollute the water. Not to mention the fact that they pollute the air and put the aircraft at risk.

What is the difference between waste from volcanoes? Eruptions tear out fragments of rocks and gases that can arise in different ways. This is the micro-rocks of the rock, the size of the grain of sand. Unlike ordinary ash, volcanics are abrasive and corrosive and do not dissolve in water.


Mount Pinatubo (Pinatubo), Luzon, Philippines - 1991, VEI 6

The catastrophic eruption of Pinatubo was a classic explosive eruption. The eruption ejected more than 5 cubic kilometers of by-products into the air and created an ash column that rose 35 km in the atmosphere. Then all this fell on one village, the roofs of many houses which even collapsed under the weight of ash.

Continuous release of water vapor and volcanic gases. A typical remnant of large eruptions, such as Tambor, mixes pulverized rock, lava and fragments of its own volcanic crater. It is a mixture of pyroclastic materials, pieces of tree trunks and mud, which is formed soon after the rash.

It is magma that comes to the surface, the rock is in a state of confluence. It is usually released together with volcanic gases. The cataclysmic eruption of Pinatubo sent a huge amount of ash into the sky and spread all over the world, reducing global temperatures by 1 degree Fahrenheit for the next year.

The explosion also resulted in the release of several million tons of sulfur dioxide and other elements that had spread throughout the world due to air currents and caused a global temperature drop of 0.5 degrees Celsius next year.


Ambrym Island, Republic of Vanuatu - 50 CE, VEI 6+

The volcano explosion index was developed in the 1990s using factors such as eruption volume and other variables to quantify the volcano's power. Each level is ten times the lowest. The history of mankind demonstrates powerful and destructive eruptions. From a practical point of view, it is difficult for scientists to classify the intensity of events in the same category.

01-Eruption in Huainaputin in Peru

This peak was the site of the largest volcanic eruption in recorded South American history. The explosion sent debris into the Pacific Ocean, 75 miles from here and buried fifty square miles. The area of ​​twenty square kilometers to the west of the mountain remains covered to this day. The cataclysm damaged the neighboring cities of Arequipa and Mokengua, which only recovered a century later.

The volcanic island, an area of ​​665 square kilometers, is part of a tiny country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, witnessed one of the most impressive eruptions in human history, when a huge amount of ash and ash was released into the atmosphere and a caldera 12 km in diameter .

The eruption of the volcano, located along the arch of volcanic islands in the sub-podzor zone of the Indian-Australian plate, drove out a huge number of rocks for thousands of kilometers. The explosion also created a tsunami, whose maximum wave heights reached 140 feet and killed about a thousand people. Meters pointed to the tides seven thousand miles from the Arabian Peninsula.

From time to time, she always comes to life sporadically. A violent explosion occurred after the volcano was silent for about five hundred years and left a large crater almost a mile in diameter on the southwestern flank of the mountain. A symmetrical volcano covered with trees is part of a chain that rises along the Pacific coastal plain of Guatemala. He has been in continuous activity since the explosion.

The volcano to this day continues to be one of the most active in the world. It erupted about 50 times, since 1774, and turned out to be the most dangerous neighbor for nearby people. In 1894, six people died as a result of falling on them volcanic bombs, and four people drowned in lava flows. In 1979, acid precipitation, provoked by a volcanic eruption, burned several local residents.

The eruption of Novarupta, one of a series of volcanoes on the Alaska Peninsula, which is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, was the largest volcanic explosion of the century. A powerful action sent three cubic miles of magma and ash into the air, covering an area of ​​three thousand square kilometers. Ash more than one meter.

A volcano located in a chain created along a subduction zone, the cataclysmic eruption of Pinatubo was a classic example of an explosive force that can be created. He threw more than a cubic mile of material into the air and created a pillar of ash that climbed to 22 miles into the atmosphere.


The Ilopango volcano (Ilopango), Salvador - 450 AD, VEI 6+

Although this mountain is in the center of El Salvador, just a few miles east of the capital of San Salvador, it survived only two eruptions in its history, the first being very strong. It covered most of Central and Western Salvador with ashes and ashes, and destroyed the early Mayan cities, forcing residents to flee.

Trade routes were destroyed, and the center of the Mayan civilization moved from the mountainous areas of El Salvador to low-lying areas in the north in Guatemala. Caldera eruptions are currently one of the largest lakes in El Salvador.


Mount Thera (Thera), Santorini Island, Greece - 1610 BC, VEI 7

Geologists believe that the volcano of the islands of the Aegean Sea of ​​Tera exploded with a force equivalent to the strength of several hundred atomic bombs. Although there are no records confirming the existence of the eruption, geologists think that this was the strongest explosion ever seen by man.

The island of Santorini (part of the volcanic islands archipelago), on which the volcano is located, was home to the people of the Minoan civilization, although there are some indications that the islanders suspected the volcano's "desire" to explode and could be evacuated on time. But even if we assume that the residents managed to escape, the eruption still damaged their culture. It is also worth noting that the volcano provoked the strongest tsunami, and the huge release of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere caused a global temperature drop and climate change afterwards.


Changbaishan Volcano (Changbaishan), border of China and North Korea, 1000, VEI 7

Also known as the Baitoushan volcano, as a result of its eruption, so much volcanic material was thrown out that even in northern Japan, which is 1200 km from the site of the event, it was felt. The eruption created a large caldera - almost 4.5 km in diameter and about 1 km in depth. Currently, the caldera is the lake of Tianchi, which is popular among tourists not only because of its beauty, but also because of the alleged unidentified creatures living in its depths.

The mountain erupted for the last time in 1702, and geologists believe that it is in a dormant state. Emissions of gases were recorded in 1994, but no evidence of renewal of volcanic activity was observed.


Mount Tambora (Tambora), Sumbawa Island, Indonesia - 1815, VEI 7

Explosion of Mount Tambor is the largest in the history of mankind, the index of its explosive 7, and this is a very high figure. The volcano, which is still active, is one of the highest peaks in the Indonesian archipelago. The eruption reached its apogee in April 1815, the explosion was so loud that it could be heard on the island of Sumatra, which is located at a distance of more than 1930 km. The death toll was 71,000 people, and clouds of heavy ash fell on many islands, located at a very far distance from the volcano.


In reality, volcanoes for millions of years formed the face of the Earth. Here are the most serious catastrophes associated with volcanoes, in the history of mankind.

№8 . Experts believe that the largest eruption of the volcano, which occurred at the dawn of humanity, happened in Sumatra: the volcano Toba    erupted 71,000 years ago. Then about 2,800 cubic meters were thrown into the atmosphere. km of ash, which could reduce the population of people around the world to only 10,000 people.

№7.    Eruption El Chichon    was not particularly large (5 on the VEI scale), with a maximum eruption column height of 29 km. But there was a lot of sulfur in the cloud. In less than one month, it surrounded the globe, but half a year passed before it spread to 30 ° N. t, practically not extending to the Southern Hemisphere. Samples collected with airplanes and balloons showed that the cloud particles were mostly tiny glass balls covered with sulfuric acid. Gradually sticking together, they quickly settled on the ground, and a year later the mass of the remaining cloud was reduced to about one kilo of the original. Absorption of sunlight by cloud particles warmed the equatorial stratosphere by 4 ° in June 1982, but at ground level in the Northern Hemisphere the temperature dropped by 0.4 °.

№6. Lucky , volcano in Iceland. Lucky is a chain of more than 110-115 craters up to 818 m high, stretching for 25 km, with a center on the Grimsvotn volcano and including the Eldgya canyon and the Katla volcano. In 1783-1784, a fissure eruption with a yield of about 15 km³ of basaltic lava for 8 months occurred on Laki and the neighboring Grimsvotn volcano (6 points on the eruption scale). The length of the lava flow, poured from the 25-kilometer crack, exceeded 130 km, and the area flooded by it was 565 km ². In the air, clouds of poisonous fluorine compounds and sulfur dioxide rose, which killed more than 50% of the livestock in Iceland; volcanic ash fell asleep partially or completely pasture on most of the island. Huge masses of ice, melted with lava, led to large-scale floods. The famine started, which caused the death of about 10 thousand people or 20% of the country's population. This eruption is considered one of the most pernicious in the last millennium and the largest lava eruption in historical time. The volcanic ash that was emitted by the volcano was present in the second half of 1783 over most of the territory of Eurasia. The eruption of the temperature decrease in the northern hemisphere led in 1784 to a crop failure and famine in Europe.

№5.    Eruption Vesuvius   , perhaps the most famous eruption in the world. Vesuvius (ital Vesuvio, neap Vesuvio) is an active volcano in the south of Italy, about 15 km from Naples. Located on the coast of the Bay of Naples in the province of Naples, the region of Campania. It is part of the Apennine mountain system, it has a height of 1,281 m.

The catastrophe claimed the lives of 10,000 people and destroyed the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

№4 .   In 1883 there was a catastrophic volcanic eruption Krakatoa   , which destroyed much of the island of the same name.

The eruption began in May. Until the end of August, a considerable number of rocks were taken by the explosions, which led to the devastation of the "underground chamber" near Krakatoa. The last powerful explosion of the accredited stage took place at dawn on August 27. The ash column reached an altitude of 30 km. On August 28, a large part of the island, under its own weight and pressure of the water column, collapsed into voids below sea level, carrying with it a huge mass of ocean water, the contact of which with magma caused a strong hydromagmatic explosion.

A significant part of the volcanic construction has scattered within a radius of up to 500 km. Such a range of expansion was provided by the rise of magma and rocks in the rarefied atmospheric layers, to a height of 55 km. The gas-ash column rose to the mesosphere, to a height of over 70 km. Ashes fell in the eastern Indian Ocean over an area of ​​more than 4 million km². The volume of material thrown out by the explosion was about 18 km³. The force of the explosion (6 points on the scale of eruptions), according to geologists, was no less than 200 thousand times greater than the force of the explosion that destroyed Hiroshima.
  The rumble of the explosion was clearly audible within a radius of 4 thousand km. On the coast of Sumatra and Java, the noise level, according to scientists, reached 180 decibels or more.

A significant amount of volcanic ash remained in the atmosphere at altitudes of up to 80 km for several years and caused intense coloration of the dawns.
  Raised by a tsunami explosion up to 30 m in height, about 36 thousand people died on neighboring islands, 295 cities and villages were washed away in the sea. Many of them before the approach of the tsunami were probably destroyed by an air wave that knocked down the equatorial forests on the coast of the Sunda Strait and tore roofs from houses and doors from hinges in Jakarta at a distance of 150 km from the crash site. The atmosphere of the whole Earth was outraged by the explosion for several days. The air wave has bypassed the Earth according to different data from 7 to 11 times.

№3   . For a long time people considered the Colombian volcano Ruiz    if not extinct, then, at least, asleep. They had a reason for this: the last time this volcano erupted in 1595, and then for almost five centuries showed no signs of activity.

The first signs of Ruiz's awakening became visible on November 12, 1985, when an ash release started from the crater. At 9 pm on November 13, several explosions thundered, and a full-scale eruption began. The height of a column of smoke and explosive debris of the rock reached 8 meters. Due to the outpouring of lava and the outcrops of hot gases, the temperature increased, as a result of which the snow and ice covered the volcano melted. Late in the evening the mudflow reached the town of Armero located 40 kilometers from the volcano and actually wiped it off the face of the earth. Several surrounding villages were also destroyed. Oil pipelines and power lines were damaged, bridges were destroyed. Due to the rupture of telephone lines and the erosion of roads, communication with the affected area was interrupted.

According to official data of the Colombian government, as a result of the eruption, about 23 thousand people died or lost, 5 thousand more were seriously injured and injured. Tens of thousands of Colombians lost their homes and property. From the eruption, coffee plantations were seriously affected: not only the coffee trees themselves were destroyed, but a significant part of the harvest already harvested. The economy of Colombia has suffered considerable damage.

№2. Mont Pele . This eruption, which occurred in 1902 on the island of Martinique, became the strongest in the XX century. Residents of the city of Saint-Pierre located on Martinique, which was only 8 kilometers from the volcano Mont Pelay, are used to consider this mountain as a peaceful neighbor. And, since the last eruption of this volcano, which happened in 1851, was very weak, they did not pay much attention to the tremors and rumble that began at the end of April 1902. By May, the activity of the volcano has increased, and on May 8 one of the most terrible natural disasters of the 20th century broke out.


About 8 o'clock in the morning erupted Mon-Pele. A cloud of ash and stones was thrown into the air, and the stream of lava rushed to the city. However, the most terrible were not ash and lava, but red-hot volcanic gases, sweeping through Saint-Pierre with great speed, causing fires. Desperate people tried to escape at the ships standing in the port, but only the steamer Roddan managed to get out to sea. Unfortunately, almost all of his crew and passengers were killed due to burns, only the captain and the driver remained alive.

As a result of the eruption of the volcano, the city of Saint-Pierre was almost completely destroyed, and all the people and animals that were in it died. The eruption of Mont-Pele claimed the lives of more than 30 thousand people; Of the inhabitants of the city, only the criminal who was in the underground prison could survive.

Now St. Pierre is partially restored, and at the foot of Mont-Pele a museum of volcanology was built.

№1 Tambora

The first signs of the awakening of the volcano became visible as early as 1812, when the first streams of smoke appeared above the summit of Tambor. Gradually, the amount of smoke increased, it grew denser and darker. On April 5, 1815, a violent explosion occurred, and an eruption began. The noise produced by the volcano was so strong that it was heard even 1,400 kilometers from the scene. The tons of sand and volcanic dust thrown out by Tamboroy were covered with a thick layer all the terrain in a radius of one hundred kilometers. Under the weight of the ashes, residential buildings collapsed not only on the island of Sumbawa, but also on the neighboring islands. The ashes reached even the island of Borneo, located 750 kilometers from Tambury. The amount of smoke and dust in the air was so great that within a radius of 500 kilometers from the volcano for three days there was night. According to eyewitnesses, they saw nothing further than their own hands.

This terrible eruption, lasting about 10 days, according to the most conservative estimates killed 50 thousand people. There are data according to which the number of deaths exceeded 90 thousand. Almost the entire population of Sumbava was destroyed, and the inhabitants of the neighboring islands were severely affected both by the release of ash and huge stones, and by the famine resulting from the death of fields and livestock.

Because of the eruption of Tambora in the Earth's atmosphere, a huge amount of ash and dust accumulated, and this had a significant impact on the climate of the whole planet. 1816 went down in history as a "year without summer". Due to the unusually low temperatures on the east coast of North America and in Europe, this year there were crop failures and famine. In some countries, snow held most of the summer, and in New York and in the northeastern United States, the thickness of the snow cover reached a meter. The effect of this volcanic winter gives an idea of ​​one of the consequences of a possible nuclear war - nuclear winter.


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