Gallery: Vulcan's View 8: Volcanoes and Eruptions Seen From Space for February 24, 2012
01puyehue-cordon-caulle-chile-5
It has been almost a month since the last *Vulcan's View*, so it seemed like it was time to break out another round of excellent images of volcanoes seen from space. This isn't a summary of all the volcanic activity going on right now on Earth - if you want to see that, be sure to check out the latest Smithsonian/USGS Global Volcanism Program *Weekly Volcanic Activity Report.* There you'll find piles of information about the rumblings across the planet. Off we go! Puyehue-Cordón Caulle, Chile ---------------------------- The eruption at [Puyehue-Cordón Caulle](http://www.volcano.si.edu/reports/usgs/#puyehue) has been puffing along for almost 10 months now with no real signs that it will be coming to a close soon. [This NASA Earth Observatory image](http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=77065) (above) captures the extent of ash cover in the area near the active vent, but remember, [ash from this eruption was spread over much of southern South America](http://blogs.nature.com/news/2012/02/chilean-volcanos-ash-is-still-disrupting-ecosystems.html) (in some places, likely only a few millimeters thick). Trying to estimate how much material was erupted during the last 10 months is tricky because of this dispersal of ash. However, by mapping the thickness of the ash around the volcano and in the outlying regions, volcanologists can make [isopach maps](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isopach_map) that estimate the thickness of ash over a given area, which can then be used to estimate the total volume of ash produced. Another cool feature of this image is that it shows just how complete the volcanic region at [Puyehue-Cordón Caulle](http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/volcano.cfm?vnum=1507-15=) is, with the Puyehue caldera to the south and the multitude of lava flows and domes related to Cordón Caulle to the north. *Image: Puyehue-Cordón Caulle on January 26, 2012 / NASA Earth Observatory*
02el-hierro-canary-islands-4
El Hierro, Canary Islands ------------------------- Another eruption with significant longevity, the submarine eruption off of [El Hierro](http://www.volcano.si.edu/reports/usgs/#hierro) in the Canary Islands [continues to wax and wane](http://www.ouramazingplanet.com/2447-underwater-elhierro-volcano-erupting.html) since it began in October 2011. In [this NASA Earth Observatory image](http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=77171) (above), it is clear that there is one major submarine vent (as opposed to multiple sets of vents in earlier parts of the eruption). You can also see some of the subaerial vents from past eruptions on the island itself to the northwest of La Restinga. Although seismicity continues at El Hierro, the [eruption is barely noticeable](http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/view_news/5347/El-Hierro-volcano-Canaries-increase-in-small-earthquakes-almost-no-visible-activity.html) right now. This [eruption has caused hardships](http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/feb/07/canary-island-volcano-science-upsets-locals?newsfeed=true) for the people of La Restinga who rely on boats for their livelihood. *Image: El Hierro on February 10, 2012 / NASA Earth Observatory*
03ina-caldera-moon
Ina Caldera, the Moon --------------------- Over the last week, we saw [*Nature Geosciences* article](http://www.nature.com/ngeo/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/ngeo1402.html) come out that, according to the news, either says that [we might expect future volcanism](http://gizmodo.com/5886542/volcanoes-may-erupt-on-the-moon-in-the-future) on the Moon or there is [little-to-no chance of modern volcanism](http://www.slashgear.com/super-dense-magma-means-no-moon-volcanoes-20214357/) on our nearest neighbor. The study, which [used X-rays to examine the interior state of the Moon](http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-02/esrf-xit021712.php) through artificial rocks of lunar composition, suggests that molten magma likely lurks at depth in the Moon, but the density of that magma might make an eruption highly unlikely. However, if the magma cools and differentiates (changes composition due to removal of crystals), then the magma could rise and erupt. People across the centuries have claimed to have seen volcanic eruptions on the Moon, but likely they were actually meteor impacts rather than an eruption. [Ina Caldera](http://astrobob.areavoices.com/2012/01/30/ina-caldera-one-of-the-moons-coolest-hottest-mysteries/) (above) is one of the many volcanic features on the Moon and appears to be a collapse feature, suggesting potential caldera volcanism in the lunar past. *Image: Ina Caldera on the Moon imaged by the LRO / NASA*
04kilauea-hawaii-2
Kilauea, Hawai'i ---------------- Like clockwork, Kilauea's [nearly 30-year eruption continues onward](http://www.volcano.si.edu/reports/usgs/#kilauea). This NASA image (above) shows the degassing Halema`uma`u summit crater nested inside the summit caldera. Kilueua has been in the news recently because of [a small earthquake swarm](http://mauinow.com/2012/02/23/seismic-swarm-of-quakes-reported-near-kilauea/) that is occurring near the boundary between Kilauea and Mauna Loa - a common location for tectonic earthquakes - however, sometimes these earthquake swarms also herald a change in the eruptive behavior of the East Rift Zone. [No changes have been noted so far](http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hvo/activity/kilaueastatus.php), but always [well worth watching](http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hvo/cams/). *Image: Kilauea seen on February 15, 2012 / NASA*
05tinakula-solomon-islands
Tinakula, Solomon Islands ------------------------- One of the major advantages to remote sensing is that it is very difficult to hide a volcanic eruption. Even as recently as a few hundred years ago, a major eruption could happen on the planet and [there could be no written record of the event](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/wiredscience/2012/02/the-mysterious-missing-eruption-of-1258-a-d/). Not so anymore (or at least it is very difficult). Case in point, this [steam-and-ash plume from Tinakula](http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=77183) (above) in the Solomon Islands - a remote location - but captured by satellite. *Image: Tinakula in the Solomon Island seen during February 2012 / NASA*
06kizimen-russia-3
Kizimen, Russia --------------- We end this *Vulcan's View* with three views of volcanoes in Kamchatka. The first is of [Kizimen](http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/volcano.cfm?vnum=1000-23=), a fairly simple-looking volcano that has been producing explosive eruptions and [small lava flows](http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/view.php?id=77099) frequently over the past few years. Sometimes these lava flows can collapse and produce pyroclastic flows as well. The NASA Earth Observatory recently posted [another image of Kizimen](http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/view.php?id=77226) that shows the [active lava flow](http://www.volcano.si.edu/reports/usgs/#kizimen) and ash on the snowy slopes of the volcano. *Image: Kizimen in Kamchatka seen in February 2012 / NASA Earth Observatory*
07shiveluch-russia-2
Shiveluch, Russia ----------------- Compare [this NASA Earth Observatory image](http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/view.php?id=77154) (above) of [Shiveluch](http://www.volcano.si.edu/reports/usgs/#shiveluc) with the previous image of Kizimen and you can clearly see how much more complex the history of Shiveluch might be. On the periphery are long lava flows that are likely quite old and part of the ancestral Shiveluch. In the modern edifice, a caldera opens to the south that represents a collapse or highly explosive eruption. Within that caldera sits the modern dome, slowly filling in the caldera with new lava (much like [the domes at Mount St. Helens](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rj9ahS4qtmc) in Washington) - and these domes collapse to produce pyroclastic flows and avalanche scarps as well. *Image: Shiveluch in Kamchatka seen on February 2, 2012 / NASA Earth Observatory*
08bezymianny-russia
Bezymianny, Russia ------------------ Some of the volcanoes of Kamchatka are so close together they are practically built on top of each other. [Bezymianny](http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/volcano.cfm?vnum=1000-25=) sits on the side of the larger volcano, [Kamen\*](http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/volcano.cfm?vnum=1000-251), which itself is on the side of [Kliuchevskoi](http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/volcano.cfm?vnum=1000-26=) (also known as Klyuchevskaya or Kliuchevskaya) - similar to [Three Sisters in Oregon](http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Imgs/Jpg/Sisters/Images/Sisters85_aerial_three_sisters_oregon_09-85_med.jpg). However, Bezymianny is its own magmatic system in its own right. Compared to its Kamchatkan brethren, Bezymianny has been quiet over the last year, but [a new seismic swarm and an increasing thermal anomaly](http://www.volcano.si.edu/reports/usgs/#bezymian) seen at the summit suggest that new eruptions from the volcano might be starting soon. *Image: Bezymianny in Kamchatka seen on February 19, 2012 (\*Kamen is labeled as Kliuchevskoi in this image - Kliuchevskoi is just to the north of Kamen. Special thanks to Eruptions reader Balazs for catching that) / NASA*
