Monday Musings

Again, sorry about the paucity of posts. Getting prepared to move 3/4 of the way across a continent will do that. Look for the next Volcano Profile, this time for Erebus in Antarctica, to be posted sometime in the next week or so.

We did get some news over the weekend of a large eruption at Shiveluch. The volcano in Kamchatka has been active all summer, but on Saturday it produced a 5,000 meter / ~23,000 foot ash plume. This was accompanied by 170 earthquakes and multiple avalanches, likely produced by the collapsing dome on the summit of the volcano. There is a little more information about the new network of webcams that are being set up to watch some of the most active Kamchatkan volcanoes, including Shiveluch (although the article frustrating labels the picture included as “erupting volcano,” without bothering to identify where in the world it is. Any ideas?)

Crater Lake, with Wizard Island, a post-caldera collapse basaltic scoria cone.

A few other bits of news:

Being a former NPS ranger at Crater Lake National Park (Oregon), I would say I am against this, but a company wants to stay flying helicopter tours around the caldera. One of the nicest things about the park is the tranquility of the area, and the idea of helicopters buzzing around the caldera every day does not appeal to me. Luckily, the FAA says it might take “years” to decide this issue. Hopefully, it withers on the vine.

We have some new images of Martian volcanism thanks to the Mars Express high resolution cameras. There appear to be abundant basaltic lava flows that stand out versus the dusty martian backdrop along the Ma’adim Vallis region of the planet.