Live Volcano on La Palma
Science No volcano in 2022?
"All the signs indicate that it is over"
The feeling among scientists is that the La Palma volcano continues to slow down little by little, but it cannot be firmly affirmed that the end is near.
The eruption, which is already the longest in the island's history, could have run out of magma, given the low levels of tremor that have been registered, but there are other indicators that are not so promising, such as the number of earthquakes or, above all, the amount of sulfur dioxide in the plume, which is still high.
Occasional spikes in activity cannot be ruled out either, such as the one experienced on Monday, when lava bombs fell again at times and there was a specific episode with great emission of magma. In any case, and even if there were no more unpleasant surprises, it would take days or even weeks
before firmly stating that the eruption has come to an end
.
"After this episode [the emission of lava and bombs on Monday], the eruptive activity has decreased until it practically disappeared, remaining in this state until today [Tuesday] morning, in which
only a weak fumarole activity is visible
", Miguel Ángel Morcuende, technical director of Pevolca, summarized. "As of yesterday afternoon the volcano began to decrease and perhaps the most remarkable thing right now is that the activity is in a situation of
impasse
at this time," he summarized.
The emergency, however, is far from over. On Monday,
the towns of El Paso, Los Llanos de Aridane and Tazacorte
were
punctually confined
due to high levels of sulfur dioxide in the atmosphere. The thresholds for particles less than 10 microns (PM10) were also exceeded in some areas, while the Volcanological Institute of the Canary Islands (Involcan) warned yesterday afternoon that potentially lethal gas emissions are still being measured in some areas, within the area. of exclusion.
Regarding the sulfur dioxide in the plume, a key indicator to anticipate the end of the eruption, Morcuende said that it still shows "
high values, within a general downward trend
." He also recalled that episodes like the one on Monday, which he referred to as a new "pulse" of the volcano, force us to maintain vigilance: "We still have to keep waiting; the impression may be one and the reality may be another. The attitude of the Scientific Committee has clearly been one of prudence. Of tranquility, of prudence. In principle, this is going reasonably well, but nothing more. "
The lava flows are still active, although yesterday they no longer received material from the volcanic cone: "The little lava that can arise is always through the lava tube," Morcuende clarified, before thus summarizing the situation to questions from the local press: "
No We can say at this moment that we are faced with what you want and I more than you, which is for this to end
. "
The Scientific Committee, which yesterday did not participate in the daily press conference because it was meeting, stated in it in a statement published late in the afternoon, where it referred to an "exhaustion of the eruptive process", although it clarified that "
A new upturn in strombolian activity and emission of streams cannot be ruled out
."
Of particular concern in this regard are the high levels of sulfur dioxide.
Greater number of earthquakes
Another piece of information to pay attention to, according to experts, is the number of earthquakes, which
on Tuesday experienced a rebound
, although the Pevolca stressed that most were of low intensity. In addition, some specialists explained that the low level of tremor may contribute to more earthquakes being detected. "The previous days, when the magma pressure was weakening, it was having 15 or 20 earthquakes. Now it is rising a little," José Luis Barrera, an expert in volcanology from the Official College of Geologists, told this newspaper, after exceeding 75 newspapers. yesterday afternoon.
"
There may be earthquakes and there may not be magma,
" Barrera clarified, although he stressed that it is not yet possible to end the crisis: "We must always be aware of how it evolves. We cannot quickly say that it is going to stop. For now, it does not stop. Obviously, the indicators are weaker than 20 days ago; not much tremor is detected, which is the movement that magma produces when it moves ", he weighed, although he added:" The gases continue to come out ... That is the current situation: it is necessary to be doing continuous vigilance ".
He also recalled that the affected environment on La Palma "has been
active for at least 500 years
", since there are historical records.
"If it is not within this crisis, it will be later, but another volcano will end up emerging in Cumbre Vieja," said Barrera.
Finally, he warned that a few days ago earthquakes have been registered in a nearby area that "is not exactly the domain of Cumbre Vieja."
There are very few earthquakes, he clarified, although he asked: "It would be convenient to review this data well."
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