Mount Etna is sliding into the sea. History shows that could be catastrophic.
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Sicily’s Mount Etna is one of the world’s most active volcanoes , but scientists say eruptions aren’t the only major threat posed by this smoldering peak.
A new study shows that Etna is slowly sliding toward the sea, raising the prospect that it may suddenly collapse and trigger a massive tsunami that could devastate the region around the eastern Mediterranean Sea.
“Etna is a big and heavy volcano, so gravity is pulling it down,” Morelia Urlaub, a research scientist at the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research in Kiel, Germany, and the study’s lead author, told NBC News MACH in an email. “It can spread more easily towards the sea as there is nothing to 'stop' it.”
The volcano’s slow subsidence has been known since the 1990s. But Urlaub and her colleagues used a network of underwater sensors along the volcano’s southeastern flank to get a detailed look at its movement.
Etna typically moves about 2 to 3 centimeters (about 1 inch) per year, according to Urlaub. In the recent study, published Oct. 10 in the journal Science Advances , the sensors showed that Etna’s creeping motion occasionally speeds up for weeks or months at a time as molten rock (magma) builds up underground before spewing out in an eruption; in 2017, the sensors detected a slip of 4 centimeters (about 2 inches) over eight days, without an associated eruption.
The sensors also detected motion in parts of the volcano’s flank that lie underwater, far from the heart of Etna’s volcanic activity — an unexpected finding that suggests that magma alone can’t account for the continuing slide.
“If rising magma would cause flank movement, then we would expect the largest movement to take place very close to the magma source,” Urlaub said. “But our measurements show that the flank moves even very far from the magma source.”
John Murray, a geologist at the Open University in the U.K., has spent decades studying Etna. He said he was surprised to learn that Etna moved so much over just an eight-day period. A sudden collapse of Etna could be “absolutely devastating” to the region, he said, but then offered a measure of reassurance about the risk.
“It’s clearly very worrying if this were to happen, but I have to emphasize that there’s absolutely no sign of this happening at this present time,” he said. “We need to know a lot more about it before we can make any kind of predictions like that.”
Urlaub agreed that the immediate risk is low. “We know from the geologic record that collapses are common in the life cycle of volcanoes ,” she said. “But it is important to keep in mind that we are talking about geologic time scales here — Etna is 500,000 years old.”
But other volcanoes have shown just how catastrophic sudden collapses can be.
On May 18, 1980, the northern flank of Mount St. Helens , a volcano in Washington State, collapsed after a 5.1-magnitude earthquake struck the area. The resulting eruption and landslide caused what the U.S. Geological Survey called the “largest debris avalanche on Earth in recorded history.” It killed 57 people and caused $1.1 billion in damage , according to the agency.
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And just when you think that things couldn't get worse, you have mother nature possibly taking out a huge hunk of the Mediterranean.
I guess from the sound of this article is not if but when.
Etna is an explosive volcano, and from what was learned from Mt St Helens and Mt Pinatubo, they happen all at once....
And can move massive amounts of earth in just seconds...
Someday they will learn not to build on the side of volcanos....
It will happen, just like the Hawaiian earth slide zone surrounding the islands.... The salt air tends to corrode the rock faster than like up here in the PNW.
It would be the disaster of the century....
E.A I Doubt it, the Canary Islands, is Far far worse!
Lol or in flood zones, earthquake zones, tornado zones, hurricane areas, avalanche zones, etc, etc. Somehow I don't think humanity learns to well.
That is a definite " IF " this however::Catastrophic
While they are unwilling to State that a Hurricane is possible within Five Days , I would say it is 50/50 Considering West South West travel and water Temperature in that Direction.
Then Have a Look at Upper Flow and guess what!!
So much for staying on topic.....
E.A Thanks did you Notice the Word that is a Link?
What is that word, and why it is used as a Link?
[Removed]
So tell me what " Catastrophe " is worse, the one in Nature, or the ones on Man/Womans Hearts?
…………………. So I ask, what is the Seed all about? ………………….
E.A 70MPH heading west, so any one can tell us at what speed will it be Hurricane 1?
EA,
Please stay on topic. This is about Mt. Etna and volcanos.
E.A I See and Not about Catastrophic/ise and Tsunamis, and what causses them is that right?
Interesting!!! But !!…..
E.A Ahhh Yes it is not about " it could trigger a tsunami that has the potential to devastate the region. "
So I wonder what it is about
" but I have to emphasize that there’s absolutely no sign of this happening at this present time,” he said. “We need to know a lot more about it before we can make any kind of predictions like that.”"
But what IS Happening " is " " OFF Topic " ohhh OK I get what this site is for... Sorry!!!!
A Hurricane certainly can not be a cause for a Post on this Article, How SILLY of ME. Pardon me Again . Mea Culpa!
I wonder how fast they can turn this into an accusation against T-rump?
Again, NWM please stay on topic.
Yes mam'
Now that we got off topic out of the way.... {chuckles}
But if the risk is determined to be more imminent, how can all those people be evacuated quickly enough?
This scenario reminds me of some advice I was given a long time ago. Something about grabbing behind both knees, bending over and kissing something goodbye.
I always love statements like this.
First sentence: Ahhhh, no worries.
Second sentence: Well, actually we have no idea when it's gonna blow.
Yeah, I wouldn't find that especially reassuring if I lived in a coastal city on the Mediterranean.
There are a lot of shipping ports in those hurricane-prone areas.
It's not just those on the oceanfront affected. I have cousins who live miles inland in NC, and they experienced flooding from Irma. There's really no way to live in proximity to a seaport and not risk being affected by a hurricane. My point is that there are reasons to live in coastal areas, and some of them are practicality, not pleasure.
Really most of Long Island suffers during a hurricane one way or another. But people settled here since this country started. Even inland gets bad storm damage.
Still, you really don't have to live that close to the coast to be destroyed from a tsunami.
There is much speculation in historical circles that the the scene in Genesis where the Israelites escape Egypt by traversing the Red Sea just before the great waters return to decimate Pharoh's charioteers in fact describes the effects of a great and historic tsunami perhaps caused by the great quake which devastated Crete at approximately that same time in ancient history. The story of Noah's great flood is consistent with an ancient natural dam or land bridge collapsing during an earthquake. Interesting stuff and events epic enough to be passed down for hundreds of generations...
Yup.
Hurricane Camille caused devastation in Nelson County, VA back in 1969.
And any area within miles of the coast, with a flat topography, could be affected by a tsunami.
During Camille, we watched as the willow trees were blown over. 150' tall, trunks as much as 5 feet diameter, root balls measuring as much as 14 feet high ripped right out of the ground.... House visibly shaking.
And that was over 40 miles inland....
When Irma looked to hit our area harder than it ended up hitting us, many people were sharing articles about Camille on Facebook. The pictures were unbelievable. One account I read said that it rained so hard that anybody caught outside in it had to put their hand over their mouths in order to breathe, or they'd inhale water instead of air. I guess 25-30 inches of rain will do that.
Hit us here in Maryland too. Another one of those stinking hurricanes my Dad had to climb trees all night long to keep them off some important power lines.
It was before my time. The worst hurricane I've been through was Sandy, and the worst of that was north of us. We had some flooding and minor wind damage, and lost power overnight. Not too bad, really. Nothing like New York.
That was a hard hit up north. It is bad enough when beach homes are prepared for a huge tidal surge, I wager, few of the places in the north east were prepared for that.
I have a friend who lived in an apartment on Times Square who was without glass in her windows for months. Plastic sheeting and a space heater aren't much comfort in January.
No, they are not. Been in similar situations of waking up to see frost on the mirror. LOL.
"We" are not really prepared for such wide scale disasters and Mass Cas. Especially keeping in mind that any super volcano has significant climate change implications.
Many of these potential disasters are changing from if to when.
I once lived in an old farmhouse where the curtains would blow in the breeze, whether the windows were open or not. We had adopted a kitten who hated our guts for the first month we had him and hissed every time he saw us, but we woke up every morning to find that he'd crawled under the blankets with us. Then he'd wake up and hiss at us again.
Being in the flatlands can be as bad as being coastal. We have seen that over and over when rivers breach their banks., or even the last hurricane to hit Texas. It is rather hard to run away from mother nature.
But a tsunami is a cataclysmic event, that is rare in the making. It doesn't care if the earthquake is caused by a volcano falling into the sea, or from an earthquake hundreds of miles away. The devastation is complete.
OMG that's hillarious. I guess that cat eventually accepted you.
About the curtains, that reminds me of some of my Dad's stories. When it snowed, snow came in his room. You can probably imagine where the toilet was. LOL.
LOL, I lived there too, did ya ever get the kitchen sink to stop dripping ?
Yeah. Six months later, he would give me a hug every day when I got home from work.
My mom grew up like that - tiny old farmhouse, 9 kids (8 lived to adulthood), 4 or 5 to a bed, and nobody minded the crowding because it kept them warm. Outhouse. If you had to pee at night in January, you probably talked yourself into holding it.
I hope I can go off a cat tangent here. When we were young, my maternal grandparents had these 2 cats, Niki and Tiki.
Two very spoiled and cantankerous Persians. Only my grandfather could feed them. Learning how to cook saved his life when escaping Russia. He would create these gourmet meals every day for these cats.
These cats seemed to live forever. Somewhere along the way we discovered when ever one would pass away my grandfather get another one that looked pretty much like the one that past. Of course, giving it the same name. We would show up the next summer and there it was.
I think it was something he learned during his "visit" to Russia.
Okay, back to regularly scheduled programming.
Still dripping. And still one electrical outlet for the whole kitchen. You can have coffee or toast, but not both at the same time, unless you unplug the fridge.
My ex never did figure out how to get the old oil furnace working. Somehow, that was my specialty. But once it was going, even with just the pilot light on, it made the whole house an oven, so we had to turn it off at night. Which made it cold enough for a cat that hated us to crawl under the covers.
Precious stories.
LOL.. The "King of queens" TV show did an episode like that with Dugies doggy.
Hilarious !
We just opened a couple of windows a little, it was nice and comfy then.
lol
Well, at least the water was in the kitchen.
LOL.
E.A Yep!!
And all on Topic except the Hurricane one :-)
Oh wow. I will find that.
Thank you.
I think sometimes, later on in a discussion tangents from a point of discussion are more accepted. Just my observation and these comments could still get moderated.
It was in an episode where they went to visit doug's parents house.
this is it:
Yep. Rocky the dog is 37...LOL
I'll note that. Thanks.
Oh, thanks for providing it.
I'm going to watch it.
E.A Doubt it.
It is what it is some are just on the " Cross-hairs " so we accept it :-)
about ten minutes in is where Carry confronts Doug's mom abo u the dog.... funny shit !!!
I doubt it too, when people good naturedly go off topic for spell most of us dont mind much.
The rest of us discussed hurricanes after someone brought up coastal living. I'd say that's a natural progression of conversation. To bring up hurricanes out of the blue in a discussion about volcanoes and tsunamis is more a derail than a natural progression. Nothing is stopping EA from posting an article about hurricanes, if that's what he wants to talk about.
E.A If I repeat IF I thought that anything I would say about Tsunamis and how a Hurricane is in effect a " Super Tsunami " ( Ie: What was Said earlier about Water Falling and Breathing And Wave Surges! ) would be of any value, I would do so, But after a Decade with you know whom, I rest my Case!
Funny how things can extrapolate.
Yes it was.
[deleted]
Then choose an image that's already on your hard drive. It need not be related to the article. You can even use your avatar.
And then you can talk about whatever you want.
E.A False, that will go against the " Distribution Rules " and the Upload from the Hard Drive is still " Half Backed Potato " !! Half Cooked may as well be Fully Cooked!
Guys,
EA is right. It would be unfair to just pick on him and not anyone else, so please get back on topic Thanks.
Choosing not to seed articles yourself doesn't give you the right to hijack others' discussions. Nobody else here is having a problem. Just you. You're choosing to have a problem.
E.A May I ask You a Question?
Yes, it is. For the first time the world could see this as it transpired in the Indian ocean and then not long after in the North Pacific.
This gives a representative graphic. Unfortunately, the audio is terrible.
E.A And Tsunami Warning Systems are next to Zero Value::
See Full Article on My Photo Album and make sure to read the US of A Military Studies as to why, the warnings can be more Dangerous then the Tsunami!
Kinda like that asteroid heading our way....
That dumb asteroid.
On May 18th, 1980, I was 70 miles from Mt. St. Helens. On that day it was also the first time I heard my mother, (may she rest), drop the "F" bomb. That was some awesome and terrifying power. Why people do not flee when told to do so makes no sense to me. We were well outside of the red zone, so no need to go anyplace but it still shook a lot of nerves and frightened a LOT of people. If the people near Etna are warned, I do hope they heed it.
I can still see what's left of the mountain on my way home. Just the, "top" of it.
Poor Harry Truman, but what a way to go, eh?
True.. Must have been one heck of a ride.
That's the before and after pictures over Spirit Lake, the second pic is not the same lake as the first. The first lake is buried under 300 feet of rubble and the location has shifted almost two miles north and 300 feet higher in a valley one ridge to the east from where it originally was.
The pumice plain in front of the mountain was where it was originally located.
When they first sent helicopters in to survey the damage, they couldn't find the lake, it was filled with blown down trees to the point it was hidden beneath them. it was three months before enough logs sank where they could see where the lake moved to....
Mother Nature can rearrange the landscape in a hurry if it so decides.....
Me and a few buddies ride up there every summer, (using a road in Randal), and we can get pretty close to the mountain. Well within where the red zone was and there is pumice all over the place. It's mostly regrown now, really nice ride. We take tents and crash in the woods around a fire sipping whiskey. Good times.
We drove up to the ridge a few years after the eruption and it was still pumice over everything, Last time it's pretty well growing now. (6 months ago) Largest landslide ever recorded. (and actually seen)
My jaw still drops watching the film of the major eruption as the whole side of the mountain slides away...
That is something. Even the pictures give a hint about these changes.
Minute by minute- the Eruption of Mt St Helens....
Before during and after....
Enjoy, see a real volcano rearrange the world around it...
And how fast mother nature can recover...
E.A WOW!!!!!
More interested in the Past, then Present and Future, well done!
What a graphic.
Getty Images
Image caption
The new study says the oceans have absorbed far more heat than previously thought
The world has seriously underestimated the amount of heat soaked up by our oceans over the past 25 years, researchers say.
Their study suggests that the seas have absorbed 60% more than previously thought.