Ready to blow? Homes evacuated on Canary Island as underwater volcano spews molten rock 60ft into the air
By Chris Parsons 7th November 2011
This week I read an article about an erupting volcano in the Canary Islands which is located in the Atlantic Ocean by Spain. Now this is not an ordinary above ground volcano. This volcano is under the water on the ocean floor. The lava or magma from the erupting undersea volcano is polluting the water around the Canary Islands with yellow and brown lava. The Canary Islands are made up of several islands made up of volcanoes over thousands of years. This volcano is located just off the island of El Hierro. The last eruption on El Hierro was in 1793 over two- hundred years ago. Authorities have been evacuating certain areas of the El Hierro island after the number of minor earthquakes in one day was over one-hundred fifty.
If this volcano were to have a major eruption, it would not be good. Scientists have found out that quakes causing volcanic activity in this general area could cause a bad tsunami. That could happen if there was major shift in the titanic plates. Scientists believe a mega tsunami could reach the east coast of the United States which is quite far away. It could also reach and other places in Europe, the North of Africa and parts of South America.
The underwater volcanic eruption off El Hierro cannot be good for marine life, the environment, or the nearby coast of El Hierro and its people. In conclusion I really like this article because it included a lot of pictures and graphs and even a video that helped the readers visualize the eruption of this unusual under sea volcano.
This volcano sounds dangerous. I hope it does not have a large eruption.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Abby. It is dangerous.
ReplyDeleteI have always wanted to visit the Canary Islands off the coast of Spain. This is very interesting that this volcano is spewing lava so high up. This is an island in the making. Thanks for sharing an image to show us where this volcano is located.
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