Volcanoes

What are volcanoes and why do we study them? Volcanoes are vents in the earth's crust from which molten rock and steam issue. Volcanoes are fascinating, changeable geological phenomena! They can be dormant or they can erupt over and over again over hundreds and even thousands of years. Steve Carey, one of the scientists exploring the remains of the Thera volcano has said that "volcanoes are incredibly complex natural systems and it's very difficult to predict their behavior. Just like each person, each volcano seems to have its own personality." By studying lots of them, we can find patterns to help us understand what could happen when a volcano erupts.

During their research, the team will investigate the eruption of the Thera volcano 3600 years ago, a huge explosive eruption occurred on the Greek island of Santorini in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. The eruption buried the ancient town of Akrotiri and led to collapse of the island's central part to form a submarine caldera. The majority of erupted material was in the form of pyroclastic flows (very hot, fast-moving mixture of ash, pumice, rock fragments and gas that can form during an explosive volcanic eruption) that advanced quickly into the ocean around the island. Most of the volcanic deposits from this eruption are therefore now on the sea floor around Santorini and have yet to be studied in detail.

Estimated to be four times more powerful than the Krakatoa volcano of 1883, the eruption left a crater 18 miles in diameter, spewed volcanic ash throughout the Eastern Mediterranean, and may have resulted in global climatic impacts. Accompanied by earthquakes and a tsunami, the volcano destroyed human settlements, fleets of ships, and may have contributed to the collapse of the Minoan civilization on the island of Crete, 110 km to the south.

On Thera, the ancient city of Akrotiri was completely buried beneath the ash. Excavation of the city began in 1967, and is ongoing. The Bronze Age eruption of the Thera volcano was by no means its last. In fact, the volcano erupted at least 12 times between 197 BC and 1950; and most geologists agree that a violent eruption will happen again.

Volcanic eruptions not only change the natural landscape and man-made structures, but also change climate. Ben Franklin was the first person to postulate that volcanic eruptions and the spewing ash clouds could affect the world's climate.
Learn the parts of a volcano.