China News Service, Jakarta, December 12 (Reporter Li Zhiquan) The eruption of Mount Malapi in West Sumatra, Indonesia, killed more than 6 people. During the same period, a number of volcanoes in this "country of a thousand islands" erupted intensively, were they affected by each other?
Indonesia is located in the Pacific Rim of the Pacific Ring of Mountains, also known as the Pacific Rim Belt, Pacific Rim Seismic Zone, or Ring of Fire, which is an area around the Pacific Ocean where earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are frequent. The Indonesian islands of Java and Sumatra are located in the Mediterranean-Himalayan volcanic seismic zone, which is another region where earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur frequently, and the plates move violently.
Malapi volcano erupted at 3:14 local time on the 54rd, spewing out a column of ash up to 3000,6 meters high. Since then, there have been eruptions one after another. At about 10 o'clock on the <>th, the observation equipment monitored the eruption of the volcano again.
Also on the 6th, the Sons of Krakatoa volcano (belonging to Lampung Province) in the Sunda Strait of Indonesia erupted again on the basis of a multi-day eruption. The Sunda Strait is a strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra, connecting the Java Sea with the Indian Ocean.
Indonesia is home to more than 12 active volcanoes, with the most active being Mount Merapi in central Java. On December 1 and 2, Mount Merapi erupted twice.
Looking east, the Irilevo Toloko volcano in East Nusa Tenggara province erupted again on the 2th after erupting on the 5nd, ejecting a column of ash up to 500 meters high and lasting about 1 minute. Authorities have upgraded the volcano to alert status three.
The four volcanoes are located in the same volcanic belt, which stretches from Sumatra in the west and the Sunda Strait in Indonesia, Java in the central part of the country, to the Nusa Tenggara archipelago in the east. According to the official website of the Indonesian Volcanic and Geological Hazard Mitigation Center, there were more than 5 volcanic eruptions in one day on the 10th alone. Why did they erupt intensively at the same time?
In the case of Mount Malapi alone, which caused casualties, Indonesia's National Disaster Resilience Agency (NDCA) reported a sudden and violent eruption. The Malapi Volcano Observatory also said that the eruption occurred suddenly.
In the case of the Sons of Krakatoa volcano, NASA said that the eruption was within a monitorable eruption period.
Ahmed, an official in charge of volcano monitoring at the Indonesian Center for Volcanic and Geohazard Mitigation, said each volcano has different magma characteristics, magma reservoirs and eruption characteristics. Although these mountains are located within the same ring of fire, they are not related. There is no connection between them.
"Indonesia is the country with the most volcanoes in the world, and it's normal for four to five volcanoes to erupt every year." Ahmad explained in an interview with Indonesian media.
Hendra Gunawan, head of the Indonesian Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation, said that the high volcanic activity in Indonesia is due to Indonesia's location at the intersection of three active plates, namely the Indian plate, the Eurasian plate, and the Pacific plate.
As of the end of November, of the 11 volcanoes that are continuously monitored in Indonesia, 68 are in Level 3 alert, 18 are in Level 47 alert, and 450 are in Level <> (normal) status. According to statistics, about <>.<> million people live in Indonesia and are active around volcanoes. (ENDS)