Smokin' hot island rises up from depths of the Red Sea   MSNBC - December 28, 2011
The Red Sea has a new inhabitant: a smoking island. The island was created by a wild eruption that occurred in the Red Sea earlier this month. It is made of loose volcanic debris from the eruption, so it may not stick around long.

As seen from space: Volcanic eruption creates new island in the red sea   PhysOrg - December 28, 2011
Looking for some new lake-front property? HereÕs the newest available on the planet. Volcanic activity in the Red Sea that started in mid-December has created what looks like a new island. The Advanced Land Imager (ALI) on NASAÕs Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite captured a high-resolution, natural-color image on December 23, 2011 showing an apparent island where previously there was none. Here, a thick plume of volcanic ash still rises from the new island.

Volcanic eruption could give rise to new island in the Canaries   Telegraph.co.uk - December 5, 2011

For more than a month, burning lava and gases have been spewing up through the sea bed three miles south of El Hierro, the smallest of the seven Canary Islands. The eruption is part of the long-term volcanic evolution of the Canary Islands, which could either result in an entirely new island, or add additional territory to the southern coast of El Hierro.

Earth's First Life Rode Rafts Across Sea, Study Suggests   Live Science - September 13, 2011
Floating rafts of volcanic rock could have been cradles of life in the early days of Earth, some scientists suggest.The circumstances under which life emerged sometime before 3.5 billion years ago remain largely mysterious. Commonly believed settings for the origin of life include deep-sea hydrothermal vents. Now scientists in England and Australia suggest that rafts of pumice, which is essentially solidified lava froth, were instrumental as vessels for first life. This pale volcanic rock, which is rich in gas bubbles, is the only known rock type that naturally floats on the surface of the sea.

Source of Earth's biggest eruptions discovered   MSNBC - July 27, 2011
Gigantic deluges of lava, or 'flood basalts,' tied to history's mass extinctions. A half dozen of the most titanic volcanic eruptions in Earth's history - including one potentially linked with the extinction of the dinosaurs - might all stem from the same ancient reservoir of super-hot rock near the Earth's core, scientists have found. Gigantic deluges of lava known as flood basalts have been linked with mass extinctions throughout history. For instance, a series of colossal volcanic eruptions near the end of the Age of Dinosaurs between 67 million to 63 million years ago created the mammoth Deccan Traps lava beds in India, which originally may have covered as much as 580,000 square miles, more than twice the area of Texas.

Satellite gallery shows Chilean volcano plume moving around the world   Science Daily - June 16, 2011

Three different satellite image flyovers were combined from NASA's Aqua satellite to show the journey of the volcanic ash from Puyehue-Cord—n Caulle volcano as it traveled across the southern Pacific Ocean, past New Zealand

  Chile: Puyehue volcano chain erupts, forcing evacuation   BBC - June 5, 2011
Puyehue volcanic eruptions in Chile   Wikipedia

The eruptions sent ash across many parts of South America to the Atlantic, as well as Australia and New Zealand, affecting the lives, health, travel plans, and businesses of millions of people. The eruptions sent ash across many parts of South America to the Atlantic affecting the lives, health, travel plans, and businesses of millions of people. Authorities in Chile went house to house, trying to persuade stragglers near the volcano to leave because of an increasing danger of toxic gas and flash floods.

  Volcano blasts tower of ash near Mexico City   MSNBC - June 3, 2011

The Popocatepetl volcano that towers over Mexico City began rumbling again Friday, shooting a blast of ash about 2 miles above its crater at dawn. The ash cloud drifted first to the west and then turned back east toward the city of Puebla, Mexico's national disaster prevention agency said.

Bleach in the Icelandic Volcanic Cloud   Science Daily - May 27, 2011
One year after the Eyjafjallajškull volcano in Iceland brought European air traffic to a standstill its ash plume revealed a surprising scientific finding: Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Mainz found that the ash plume contained not only the common volcanic gas sulfur dioxide, but also free chlorine radicals. Chlorine radicals are extremely reactive and even small amounts can have a profound impact on local atmospheric chemistry.

New explanation for Hawaiian hot spot   PhysOrg - May 27, 2011
Scientists in the US have suggested that volcanic activity in Hawaii could be fed by a giant hot rock pool 1,000 kilometers west of the islands and in the Earth's mantle, rather than being fed by a hot plume of magma as previously thought.

800-Mile-Wide Hot Anomaly Found Under Seafloor off Hawaii   National Geographic - May 27, 2011

Hawaii's long-accepted birth story - that the volcanic islands were, and are, fueled by a hot-rock plume running directly to Earth's scorching core - could be toast, a new study hints. Scientists say they've finally found solid evidence of a giant mass of hot rock under the seafloor in the region. But it's not a plume running straight from the core to the surface - and it's hundreds of miles west of the nearest Hawaiian island. Until now, the researchers say, good seismic data on the region has been scarce, so there was no real reason to question the most obvious explanation: that a stream of hot rock directly from around Earth's core formed the 3,100-mile-long (5,000-kilometer-long) chain of islands and undersea mountains in the Pacific Ocean.

Largest Fossil Spider Found in Volcanic Ash   Live Science - April 20, 2011
The largest fossil spider uncovered to date once ensnared prey back in the age of dinosaurs, scientists find. The spider, named Nephila jurassica, was discovered buried in ancient volcanic ash in Inner Mongolia, China. Tufts of hairlike fibers seen on its legs showed this 165-million-year-old arachnid to be the oldest known species of the largest web-weaving spiders alive today - the golden orb-weavers, or Nephila, which are big enough to catch birds and bats, and use silk that shines like gold in the sunlight.

Deadly Mud Volcano to Erupt for 26 More Years   National Geographic - March 5, 2011
Mud from Indonesia's Lusi volcano engulfs the village of Sidoarjo, East Java. The world's biggest and fastest growing mud volcano, Lusi sprang to life in May 2006, and it and may continue to spew hot mud for another 26 years, according to a new study. Lusi could expel the equivalent of 56,000 Olympic-size swimming pools of mud before it finally simmers down, say scientists from the U.K.'s Durham University.

Huge volcano under Yellowstone Park rising   MSNBC - February 9, 2011
The huge volcano under Yellowstone National Park has been rising at an unprecedented rate during the past several years, according to a new study. In the ancient past, the Yellowstone volcano produced some of the biggest-known continental eruptions, but the recent rising doesn't mean another doomsday eruption is looming, scientists say.

Volcano Lightning Electrifies Japan Eruption   National Geographic - January 28, 2011
Lightning crackles over Japan on Friday as ash and lava erupt from Shinmoedake peak, one of the calderas of the Kirishima volcano complex. Shinmoedake began erupting Wednesday, coating nearby villages and farms with ash and prompting authorities to ask for voluntary evacuations within a 1.2-mile (2-kilometer) radius. Volcanic lightning is still a mystery, though it may be that electrically charged silica - part of magma - interacts with the atmosphere when it flies out of a volcano, Steve McNutt of the Alaska Volcano Observatory told National Geographic News in February 2010.

Geologist's discoveries resolve debate about oxygen in Earth's mantle   PhysOrg - December 15, 2010
Analysis of erupted rock from Agrigan volcano in the western Pacific near Guam found it to be highly oxidized as a result of its exposure to oxygen when it formed in the Earth's mantle. When, over millions of years, seafloor rocks are transported back into the Earth's mantle at subduction zones Š sites on the seafloor where tectonic plates have collided, forcing one plate beneath the other Š they deliver more oxygen into the mantle.

Villagers evacuated as Ecuador volcano erupts - News, Video   Crystalinks Report - December 5, 2010
The Tungurahua volcano in Ecuador is billowing ash into the sky and sending super-hot pyroclastic flows surging down its slopes, causing authorities to evacuate nearby villages.

Volcanoes Have Shifted Asian Rainfall   Science Daily - November 6, 2010
Scientists have long known that large volcanic explosions can affect the weather by spewing particles that block solar energy and cool the air. Some suspect that extended "volcanic winters" from gigantic blowups helped kill off dinosaurs and Neanderthals. In the summer following Indonesia's 1815 Tambora eruption, frost wrecked crops as far off as New England, and the 1991 blowout of the Philippines' Mount Pinatubo lowered average global temperatures by 0.7 degrees F -- enough to mask the effects of manmade greenhouse gases for a year or so.

Pompeiians Flash-Heated to Death - "No Time to Suffocate"   National Geographic - November 4, 2010
Until now it's been widely assumed that most of the victims were asphyxiated by volcanic ash and gas. But a recent study says most died instantly of extreme heat, with many casualties shocked into a sort of instant rigor mortis.

Indonesia's Explosive Geology Explained   Live Science - October 26, 2010
Indonesia is a dangerous country to call home. Precariously located above the grinding and mashing of several tectonic plates, and ringed by a chain of fire-breathing volcanoes, the country's islands are located in one of the most volatile regions in the world. The eruption of a volcano and the shaking of a tsunami-generating earthquake this week is just one reminder of Indonesia's fiery foundation.

Iceland's volcanic eruption yields ash clues   BBC - September 28, 2010
Samples collected using double-sided sticky tape could give fresh insight into the Eyjafjallajoekull eruption. The samples could reveal how fine ash thrown up into the atmosphere by the Icelandic eruption fell to ground as clumps or "aggregates" of ash. The eruption of the volcano in March this year caused chaos, shutting down huge swathes of European air space.

Volcano quiet for 400 years erupts in Indonesia   PhysOrg - August 29, 2010
Mount Sinabung spews volcanic smoke as it erupts in Karo, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Sunday, Aug. 29, 2010. The volcano spewed hot lava and sand high into the sky early Sunday in its first eruption in 400 years causing thousands of people living around its slope to evacuate their homes.

New insights into volcanic activity on the ocean floor   PhysOrg - June 16, 2010

Clouds and Stars over Cotopaxi Volcano in Ecuador   NASA - May 26, 2010

  Thousands flee volcanos in Ecuador and Guatemala   BBC - May 29, 2010
Ecuador's Tungurahua Volcano - Throat of Fire   Wikipedia
Guatemala's Pacaya Volcano   Wikipedia

UAF scientists collaborate to study Eyjafjallajokull lightning   PhysOrg - May 25, 2010
To study Eyjafjallajokull, researchers from New Mexico Tech have set up six instruments near the volcano as part of a lightning-mapping array. The sensor stations consist of an omnidirectional antenna hooked up to an electronics package, a data recorder, a GPS clock and other components.

Hawaii volcano eruption reaches 10,000 days   MSNBC - May 23, 2010
Kilauea is now world's longest continuously erupting volcano

Photos: America's Ten Most Dangerous Volcanoes   National Geographic - May 18, 2010

Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens: A 30-year mystery - Gaps in knowledge still make it difficult to forecast eruptions   MSNBC - May 18, 2010
Mount St. Helens Still Recovering 30 Years Later   AP - May 18, 2010
Mount St. Helens Then and Now   Wired - May 18, 2009

Ash fears close Spanish and Moroccan airports   BBC - May 11, 2010

Huge Asphalt Volcanoes Discovered Off California   National Geographic - April 27, 2010
Massive Asphalt Volcanoes Discovered on Seafloor   Live Science - April 26, 2010

Scientists Study 'Glaciovolcanoes,' Mountains of Fire and Ice, in Iceland, British Columbia, U.S.   PhysOrg - April 23, 2010
  Volcano Shockwaves Shred Atmosphere   Discovery - April 23, 2010
2010 Eruptions of Eyjafjallajškull Wikipedia

  Eyjafjallajokull Glacier Erupts   Google Videos

Mysterious Volcano Lightning Creates Pretty Pictures   Live Science - April 20, 2010
Ash and Lightning Above an Icelandic Volcano NASA- April 19, 2010

Deepest Volcanic Sea Vents Found; "Like Another World"   National Geographic - April 12, 2010

  Caribbean: What are believed to be the world's deepest undersea volcanic vents have been discovered in the Caribbean   BBC - April 12, 2010

Scientists Explore Origins of 'Supervolcanoes' on the Sea Floor   PhysOrg - April 10, 2010
"Supervolcanoes" have been blamed for multiple mass extinctions in Earth's history, but the cause of their massive eruptions is unknown.
Ancient Supervolcano Created Giant Underwater Mountain Chain   Live Science - April 10, 2010
Roughly a dozen supervolcanoes currently exist. Some are on land, while others lie at the bottom of the ocean. Each has produced several million cubic miles of lava - about three hundred times the volume of all the Great Lakes combined - dwarfing the amount of lava produced by the Hawaiian volcanoes or the Icelandic volcano that erupted recently.

Undersea volcano threatens southern Italy with tsunami   PhysOrg - March 29, 2010

Marsili, Europe's largest undersea volcano could disintegrate and unleash a tsunami that would engulf southern Italy "at any time", a prominent vulcanologist warned in an interview published today.

Dinosaurs' dominance 'helped by mass volcanism'   BBC - March 23, 2010
Volcanic eruption opened the door for dino rule   MSNBC - March 22, 2010

  Iceland volcano could have world consequences   MSNBC - March 22, 2010
Volcanism of Iceland   Wikipedia

Russia: Klyuchevskaya and Bezymianny Volcanoes Erupt Side by Side in New Satellite Picture   National Geographic - February 20, 2010

Monster Rises From Japanese Seas May Create Island   National Geographic - February 11, 2010

Erupting from an undersea volcano some 745 miles south of Tokyo, smoke and ash rise roughly 30 stories into the air.

Link Between Exploration Well and Lusi Mud Volcano, Strongest Evidence to Date Shows   Science Daily - February 11, 2010
New data provides the strongest evidence to date that the world's biggest mud volcano, which killed 13 people in 2006 and displaced thirty thousand people in East Java, Indonesia, was not caused by an earthquake, according to an international scientific team that includes researchers from Durham University and the University of California, Berkeley.

A New Kind Of Lightning Discovered   PhysOrg - January 28, 2010
This ia about volcanic sparked lightning

  Spectacular Sea Eruption Filmed -- Deepest Ever   National Geographic - December 18, 2009

  Under Yellowstone, Magma Pocket 20% Larger Than Thought   National Geographic - December 16, 2009

Mystery Volcano Eruption Solves Global Cooling Puzzle   National Geographic - December 10, 2009
A newly detected 19th-century volcanic eruption may solve the mystery of a strangely cool decade in the early 1800s, researchers say-but the location of the volcano itself remains a puzzle. Scientists have long blamed the 1815 eruption of an Indonesian volcano, Tambora, for a worldwide cold snap the following year-the so-called year without a summer.

Ancient Volcano's Devastating Effects Confirmed   Live Science - December 4, 2009
A massive volcanic eruption that occurred in the distant past killed off much of central India's forests and may have pushed humans to the brink of extinction, according to a new study that adds evidence to a controversial topic. The Toba eruption, which took place on the island of Sumatra in Indonesia about 73,000 years ago, released an estimated 800 cubic kilometers of ash into the atmosphere that blanketed the skies and blocked out sunlight for six years. In the aftermath, global temperatures dropped by as much as 16 degrees centigrade (28 degrees Fahrenheit) and life on Earth plunged deeper into an ice age that lasted around 1,800 years.

14 Photos: From Close Up or Far Away, Amazing Volcano   Smithsonian - December 2, 2009
In his new book, Earth on Fire, photographer and geologist Bernhard Edmaier wanted to show more than just the traditional pyrotechnics of volcano eruptions. The crater fields surrounding the Marsabit Volcano show how dramatically volcanoes can shape the landscape. More than 200 craters appeared 500,000 years ago when the volcano became active after a long dormant period. They are all part of Marsabit, a shallow-sloped volcano classified as a shield volcano, which rises 3,000 feet above the Chalbi Desert.

Supervolcano eruption in Sumatra deforested India 73,000 years ago   Science Daily - November 24, 2009
The volcano ejected an estimated 800 cubic kilometers of ash into the atmosphere, leaving a crater (now the world's largest volcanic lake) that is 100 kilometers long and 35 kilometers wide. Ash from the event has been found in India, the Indian Ocean, the Bay of Bengal and the South China Sea. The bright ash reflected sunlight off the landscape, and volcanic sulfur aerosols impeded solar radiation for six years, initiating an "Instant Ice Age" that -- according to evidence in ice cores taken in Greenland -- lasted about 1,800 years.

Previously Unknown Volcanic Eruption Helped Trigger Cold Decade   PhysOrg - October 30, 2009
A team of chemists from the U.S. and France has found compelling evidence of a previously undocumented large volcanic eruption that occurred exactly 200 years ago, in 1809.

Volcanoes Played Pivotal Role In Ancient Ice Age, Mass Extinction   Science Daily - October 27, 2009
Researchers here have discovered the pivotal role that volcanoes played in a deadly ice age 450 million years ago. Perhaps ironically, these volcanoes first caused global warming -- by releasing massive amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. When they stopped erupting, Earth's climate was thrown off balance, and the ice age began. The discovery underscores the importance of carbon in Earth's climate today, said Matthew Saltzman, associate professor of earth sciences at Ohio State University.

Worst Volcanoes Even More Dangerous Than Feared   National Geographic - October 7, 2009
Some of the world's most dangerous volcanoes can erupt much more quickly than scientists had suspected, according to a new study of the massive 2008 eruption of Chile's Chaiten volcano.

Siberian volcano 'wiped out world's forests' 250m years ago   Telegraph.co.uk - October 2, 2009
A huge Siberian volcano destroyed the world's forests 250 million years ago in what scientists say was the worst extinction event the planet has ever witnessed, new research has disclosed.

"Supervolcano" With Twisted Innards Found in Italy   National Geographic - October 1, 2009
Long before Vesuvius blew its top and smothered Pompeii, Italy was rocked by a "supervolcano" eruption so powerful it possibly blocked out the sun and triggered prolonged global cooling, scientists say. The now fossilized supervolcano last erupted about 280 million years ago, leaving behind an 8-mile-wide (13-kilometer-wide) caldera, which was recently discovered in the Italian Alps' Sesia Valley.

When Yellowstone Explodes   National Geographic - October 1, 2009

Go below Yellowstone and see the "Sleeping Giant".

Plumbing of a Supervolcano Revealed   Live Science - September 24, 2009
The fossilized remains of a supervolcano that erupted some 280 million years ago in the Italian Alps are giving geologists a first-time glimpse at the deep "plumbing system" that brings molten rock from far underground to the Earth's surface. The researchers estimate the ancient eruption sent about 500 cubic kilometers of volcanic ash into the atmosphere. For comparison, the supervolcano under Yellowstone National Park, which erupted 630,000 years ago, produced about 1,000 cubic kilometers.

Photos: Top 10 Supereruptions   Discovery - September 21, 2009
Whether they take the form of suspiciously round lakes, a lazy ring of verdant hills, or actively smoking craters, calderas litter our restless planet. If you're lucky enough to wander through Ngorongoro crater in Tanzania, you might wonder how violence gave rise to such a lush Eden of life. Yellowstone's geysers and smoldering mud pots begin to transport you, but the reality of the eruptions that forged these iconic places strains the imagination. Caldera-forming eruptions are kings of the volcanic world. They are so big that the cubic kilometer - a measure of volume that would fill 400,000 Olympic swimming pools and about describes the size of the 1980 Mt. St Helens eruption Š is routinely invoked in the hundred

Lost World Found in Papua New Guinea Volcano   PhysOrg - September 8, 2009
A BBC expedition exploring inside the crater of an extinct volcano in Papua New Guinea (PNG) has discovered a lost world of dozens of weird new species and rare animals, including new frogs, a giant rat, many new insects and spiders, giant caterpillars, and a new bat species.

  Giant rat found in 'lost volcano'   BBC - September 6, 2009

  NASA Drops "Spiders" Into Mount St. Helen Volcano   National Geographic - August 14, 2009

Scientists' Drill Hits Magma: Only Third Time on Record   PhysOrg - June 29, 2009
Scientists drilling a borehole deep into IcelandÕs rocky crust to explore new methods of using geothermal energy hit a major roadblock on Thursday: Their drill ran into molten rock at a depth of 6,900 feet.

Volcano's Eruption Creates Colorful U.S. Sunsets   Live Science - July 1, 2009

Many people in the United States and Europe are seeing gorgeous lavender sunsets lately thanks to the eruption more than two weeks ago of Russia's Sarychev Peak volcano. The volcano blew its top June 12, generating a remarkable shock wave in the atmosphere seen in a photo taken by astronauts. It also hurled massive plumes of sulfur dioxide into the air, and that material has been circling the globe. Deep purple hues and ripples of white characterize the spectacular views the past few evenings. The phenomenon occurs when the ash and fine particles sprayed high into the atmosphere by the volcano scatter light. The sulfur dioxide ejected by Sarychev Peak interacts with the atmosphere to form tiny particles called sulfate aerosols.

Sarychev Peak Volcano in Stereo   NASA - June 25, 2009

Amazing Volcano Photo Reveals Shock Wave   Live Science - June 22, 2009

Origins of sulfur in rocks tells early oxygen story   PhysOrg - April 16, 2009
Sedimentary rocks created more than 2.4 billion years ago sometimes have an unusual sulfur isotope composition thought to be caused by the action of ultra violet light on volcanically produced sulfur dioxide in an oxygen poor atmosphere. Now a team of geochemists can show an alternative origin for this isotopic composition that may point to an early, oxygen-rich atmosphere.

Strange 1761 Atmospheric Phenomenon Explained   Live Science - April 15, 2009
Unusual atmospheric phenomena were recorded worldwide in 1761, unexplained at the time. Now independent astronomer Kevin D. Pang of La Canada Flintridge, California, says he's figured out the cause - and he credits Benjamin Franklin with a conceptual assist. While serving as American ambassador in Paris, Franklin first made the connection between a "dry fog" that had obscured the Sun for months in 1784, the extremely cold weather in Europe and North America that same year, and the 1783 eruption of Iceland's Laki volcano. The fog was, we now know, droplets of sulfuric acid, called vog (volcanic fog). Pang learned that on May 18, 1761, astronomers could not see the fully eclipsed Moon, which usually glows faintly with refracted Earthlight.

Alaska's Redoubt Goes Electric   National Geographic - April 14, 2009

Dramatic Image Shows Volcano's Lightning   Live Science - April 9, 2009
Mount Redoubt Wikipedia

Earth's Highest Known Microbial Systems Fueled By Volcanic Gases   Science Daily - March 4, 2009
Gases rising from deep within the Earth are fueling the world's highest-known microbial ecosystems, which have been detected near the rim of the 19,850-foot-high Socompa volcano in the Andes by a University of Colorado at Boulder research team.

Hawaii: Drillers break into magma chamber    BBC - December 17, 2008

Drillers looking for geothermal energy in Hawaii have inadvertently put a well right into a magma chamber. Kilauea is one of the most active volcanoes on Earth

Hawaii: Magma Discovered in Situ for First Time    PhysOrg - December 16, 2008
A crew drilling on the Big Island of Hawaii has discovered magma, the molten rock material - never before found in its natural habitat underground - that is the central ingredient in the evolution of planets and the lifeblood of all volcanoes.

Ancient Magma 'Superpiles' May Have Shaped The Continents    PhysOrg - December 16, 2008
Researchers have linked two giant plumes of hot rock deep within the earth to the plate motions that shape the continents. This new drawing of Earth's interior is based on one originally developed by study co-author Louise C. Kellogg of the University of California, Davis and her colleagues in 1999. A giant plume of hot rock called a "superpile" (orange) sits atop Earth's core (red), while the remnants of two subducted continental plates (blue) sink down on either side of it. A magma plume (orange with red outline) can be seen rising from the superpile to the surface as a hotspot that creates island chains such as Hawaii. Image by the Cooperative Institute for Deep Earth Research (CIDER) collaboration, courtesy of Ohio State University.

"Medusa" Worms Found in Mud Volcano    National Geographic - December 10, 2008
These new, undersea worms don't have eyes to turn you into stone. But their resemblance to snake-haired Medusa (above) wasn't lost on discoverer Ana Hilario, who plans to name at least one after the mythological Greek monster. Hilario, of Portugal's University of Aveiro, and colleagues recently found 20 species of the tiny worms, called frenulates, in mud volcanoes in the Gulf of Cadiz, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean southwest of Spain. Mud volcanoes are places where methane-filled fluids seep from the seafloor, providing energy for "exceptionally rich ecosystems.

Earthquakes can 'spark eruptions'    BBC - December 9, 2008
Very large earthquakes can trigger an increase in activity at nearby volcanoes according to a new study. The controversial findings come from an analysis of records in southern Chile. It showed that up to four times as many volcanic eruptions occurred during the year following very large earthquakes than did so in other years.

Mud eruption 'caused by drilling' BBC - November 1, 2008
The eruption of the Lusi mud volcano in Indonesia was caused by drilling for oil and gas, a meeting of 74 leading geologists has concluded. Lusi erupted in May 2006 and continues to spew out boiling mud, displacing around 30,000 people in East Java. Drilling firm Lapindo Brantas denies a nearby well was the trigger, blaming an earthquake 280km (174 miles) away. Around 10,000 families who have lost their homes are awaiting compensation, which could run as high as $70m.

Volcanoes May Be Original Womb of Life Live Science - October 20, 2008

Fifty years ago, a chemist named Stanley Miller conducted a famous experiment to investigate how life could have started on Earth. Recently, scientists re-analyzed his results using modern technology and found a new implication: The original sparks for life on our planet could have come from volcanic eruptions. The 1950s experiment was designed to test how the ingredients necessary for life could arise.

Lava flows reveal clues to magnetic field reversals PhysOrg - September 25, 2008
Ancient lava flows are guiding a better understanding of what generates and controls the Earth's magnetic field - and what may drive it to occasionally reverse direction. The main magnetic field, generated by turbulent currents within the deep mass of molten iron of the Earth's outer core, periodically flips its direction, such that a compass needle would point south rather than north. Such polarity reversals have occurred hundreds of times at irregular intervals throughout the planet's history - most recently about 780,000 years ago - but scientists are still trying to understand how and why.

Volcano's Eruption Colors World's Sunsets National Geographic - September 3, 2008
Reports of unusually fiery orange sunsets on Earth and ruby red rings around the planet Venus have popped up on the Internet in the last week.

Active Submarine Volcanoes Found Near Fiji Science Daily - June 21, 2008

Several huge active submarine volcanoes, spreading ridges and rift zones have been discovered northeast of Fiji by a team of Australian and American scientists aboard the Marine National Facility Research Vessel, Southern Surveyor. On the hunt for subsea volcanic and hot-spring activity, the team of geologists located the volcanoes while mapping previously uncharted areas. Using high-tech multi-beam sonar mapping equipment, digital images of the seafloor revealed the formerly unknown features. The summits of two of the volcanoes, named ÕDugongÕ, and ÕLobsterÕ, are dominated by large calderas at depths of 1100 and 1500 metres.

Lavas from Hawaiian volcano contain fingerprint of planetary formation PhysOrg - June 19, 2008
Hikers visiting the Kilauea Iki crater in Hawaii today walk along a mostly flat surface of sparsely vegetated basalt. It looks like parking lot asphalt, but in November and December 1959, it emitted the orange glow of newly erupted lava.

Livestock, Pets Left Behind As Chile Volcano Fears Loom National Geographic - May 10, 2008
Chile Volcano Hurts Animals, Farms National Geographic - May 8, 2008

Images: Chile Volcano Erupts With Ash, Lava, Lightning National Geographic - May 7, 2008

Chile: ChaitŽn Volcano - Erupts after 9,000 years Wikipedia - May 2, 2008

Vog - Wikipedia
Vog - Volcanic Smog - kills plants, casts a haze over Hawaii AP - May 5, 2008

For eight years, Tony and Sam Bayaoa have grown thousands of bright red, yellow and pink protea flowers on their farm. Then in March, Kilauea volcano opened a new vent and began spewing double the usual amount of toxic gas. Now about 70 percent of their crop is dried, brown and brittle. "The first reaction was - did someone poison the plants?" said Tony Bayaoa, whose two-acre farm is 35 miles from the volcano. "I've lost my livelihood."

Big Island crops are shriveling as sulfur dioxide from Kilauea wafts over them and envelops them in "vog," or volcanic smog. People are wheezing, and schoolchildren are being kept indoors during recess. High gas levels led Hawaii Volcanoes National Park to close several days last month, forcing the evacuation of thousands of visitors. Residents of this volcanic island are used to toxic gas. But this haze is so bad that farmers are thinking about growing different crops, and many people are worrying about their health.

Kirk Brewer, 33, an electrician who moved to the Big Island in 2006 from Southern California, blames his headaches and wife Tracy's itchy skin, sore throat and runny nose on the vog. "It's a bummer when you go to the other islands and see how clear and blue it is, but we'll just deal with it," Brewer said. When educator Ann Peterson of Kona went the bank last week, she and the teller were making the same noises in their throats. They looked at each other and said in unison, "Vog!"

Kilauea on the Big Island has been erupting continuously since 1983. But in mid-March, a new vent formed at the summit, giving Kilauea two large sulfur dioxide outlets instead of one. Sulfur dioxide, a pollutant that is also generated by burning coal and oil, can lead to asthma and other respiratory illnesses and aggravate lung and heart disease. When combined with dust and sunlight, it makes vog. Mixed with atmospheric moisture, it produces acid rain.

Exceptionally thick gray-white vog has hovered over parts of the Big Island for weeks, particularly those areas downwind of the crater. The wind has blown vog to Oahu, some 200 miles to the north, bathing Honolulu in a light haze. (The vog is no threat to the U.S. mainland, some 2,500 miles away.) Some crops are doing fine. Coffee and macadamia nuts, two of the Big Island's mainstays, appear unaffected. Koa and ohia trees are healthy, but eucalyptus leaves are turning brown, as are Asiatic lilies. Protea may be the hardest hit, though experts don't know why. The hand-size blossoms are used in tropical floral arrangements and are a $1.8 million-a-year business in the islands. Kelvin Sewake of the University of Hawaii College of Tropical Agriculture said he is not sure if it is the gas or acid rain that is killing the plants. He said Big Island protea growers have always suffered sulfur dioxide "burns," but he has never seen it this bad. Dan Wegner, the biggest protea farmer in Ocean View, with about 15 acres, said he usually records $70,000 in annual sales. This year, he is not sure if he will reap half that. "This is taking my viable business right now and putting it right in the dumper. I don't know what I'm going to do," Wegner said. "It's frightening."

One reason the vog is worse is that the new vent is farther inland than the older Puu Oo vent on the mountain's seaside slope. While gas from the Puu Oo vent often blows out to sea, the new plume is more likely to hit farms and communities in concentrated form. The county has issued only two temporary, voluntary evacuation advisories for Ocean View and Pahala, which have a combined population of just over 4,000. The vog that has settled over the Big Island has little or no odor. The emergency room at Ka'u Hospital in Pahala is seeing an average of three people a day - up from two - with symptoms such as coughing and shortness of breath. Dr. Cliff Field, ER director, said he is more concerned about the potential long-term harm. Large amounts of vog may cause emphysema and chronic lung disease over time. Still, he questioned whether living next to Kilauea is any worse than living in a city like Los Angeles. Sally Ancheta of the American Lung Association of Hawaii said people should stay inside when the vog is bad. But she added: "I would not recommend anybody leaving. It's too good of a place to live."

Volcano in 1600 Caused Global Disruption, Study Suggests Live Science - May 5, 2008
The effects of a massive volcanic eruption in Peru more than 400 years ago might have significantly impacted societies and agriculture world-wide, according to a new study of historic records. Huaynaputina erupted in southern Peru on Feb. 19, 1600, driving volcanic mudflows that destroyed villages for many miles around and spewing a huge column of smoke and ash into the atmosphere.

Giant Undersea Volcano Found Off Iceland National Geographic - April 22, 2008
A giant and unusual underwater volcano lies just offshore of Iceland on the Reykjanes Ridge, volcanologists have announced. The Reykjanes formation is a section of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, which bisects the Atlantic Ocean where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates are pulling apart.

Ancient Global Dimming Linked to Volcanic Eruption National Geographic - March 19, 2008

A "dry fog" that muted the sun's rays in A.D. 536 and plunged half the world into a famine-inducing chill was triggered by the eruption of a supervolcano, a new study says.

Yellowstone Is Rising on Swollen "Supervolcano" National Geographic - November 9, 2007
Yellowstone National Park is rising. Its central region, called the Yellowstone caldera, has been moving upward since mid-2004 at a rate of up to three inches (seven centimeters) a year - more than three times faster than has ever been measured. The surface is inflating like a bellows due to an infusion of magma about 6 miles (10 kilometers) underground, according to a new study published in tomorrow's issue of the journal Science. Yellowstone is situated on a giant, geologically active feature known as a supervolcano. Much of the park sits in a caldera, or crater, some 40 miles (70 kilometers) across, which formed when the cone of the massive volcano collapsed in a titanic eruption 640,000 years ago. The supervolcano has produced three similarly large blasts in the past two million years, with 30 smaller eruptions since the caldera formed. The volcano's most recent flare-up was 70,000 years ago, and volcanic heat continues to fuel the park's famous geysers and hot springs

Yellowstone Volcano Rises at Unprecedented Rate Live Science - November 9, 2007

Yellowstone National Park Wikipedia

Anak Krakatau erupts National Geographic - November 10, 2007

Etna Erupts National Geographic - September 8, 2007

Shifting Volcanoes Made Early Complex Life Possible National Geographic - August 29, 2007
Shifting volcanoes may have allowed Earth's atmosphere to fill with oxygen, spurring the development of complex life, a new study suggests. A mysterious increase in oxygen levels occurred around 2.5 billion years ago. The new research says that a massive tectonic upheaval pushed submerged volcanoes above ground, where they stopped spewing oxygen-destroying chemicals.

Thick Layer of Magma Found Under American Southwest Live Science - June 23, 2007
Scientists have spotted a thick layer of melted rock beneath the EarthÕs crust that could be part of a fluid band of hot magma circling the globe. The magma ring has until now remained a theory.

The power of the huge volcanic hotspot beneath Yellowstone National Park is much greater than previously thought EurekAlert - March 1, 2007 A 17-year University of Utah study of ground movements shows that the power of the huge volcanic hotspot beneath Yellowstone National Park is much greater than previously thought during times when the giant volcano is slumbering. The $2.3 million study, which used Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites to measure horizontal and vertical motions of Earth's crust from 1987 to 2004, found that the gigantic underground plume of molten rock known as the Yellowstone hotspot exerts itself forcefully even when it isnÕt triggering eruptions and earthquakes: As it bulges upward, the hotspot expends 10 times more energy by gradually deforming EarthÕs crust at Yellowstone than by producing earthquakes. The subterranean volcanic plume, 300 miles wide at its top end, may explain why ground along the Teton fault moves in directions just the opposite of those expected, a perplexing discovery that complicates efforts to predict when the fault might generate disastrous 7.5 earthquakes near the ski resorts of Jackson Hole. Molten rock and hot water generated by the hotspot continue to make the 45-by-30-mile Yellowstone caldera Š a giant crater Š huff upward and puff downward without producing eruptions. Measurements since the newly published study ended in 2004 show the caldera rising upward at a faster rate than ever observed before.

Pacific Ocean gives birth to new volcanic island: eyewitnesses AFP - November 9, 2006

The Pacific Ocean has given birth to a new volcanic island near Tonga, according to ocean-going eyewitnesses. Crew on board a yacht called the "Maiken" believed they were the first to see a volcanic island forming a day out from Neiafu, Tonga, while sailing towards Fiji in August, the Matangi Tonga news website reported Wednesday. "One mile in diameter and with four peaks and a central crater smoking with steam and once in a while an outburst high in the sky with lava and ashes. I think we're the first ones out here," a crew member who identified himself as Haken wrote on the yacht's web log. After ealier leaving the northern Tongan islands group of Vava'u, crew on board the "Maiken" glimpsed "pumice rafts" floating on the water before they "sailed into a vast, many-miles-wide belt of densely packed pumice". The crew had earlier encountered huge streaks of pumice after passing Tonga's Late island, according to their web log. "You might have heard about the sailor's superstition that you should 'never leave on a Friday'. Well, we did and the sea turned to stone, it is hard to get a stronger sign than that," skipper Frederik Fransson said. Neither Tonga's Ministry of Lands nor the Tonga Defense Service would confirm the creation of a new island. Separately, fishing boat captain Siaosi Fenukitau reported seeing the volcanic island, the Matangi Tonga website reported.

Volcanic eruptions score melodies BBC - August 10, 2006
The low-frequency, seismic rumblings of volcanoes are being transformed into delicate musical scores in an effort to predict when they will erupt. Researchers in Italy have already created a concerto from the underground movements of Mount Etna on Sicily. They are now creating melodies from Ecuador's recently erupted Tungurahua. By correlating the music with precise stages of volcanic activity on both volcanoes the team hope to learn the signature tune of an imminent eruption.

A new type of volcano may be heating up the floor of the western Pacific Ocean National Geographic - July 28, 2006
Scientists suspect the new volcanoes occur at cracks in tectonic

Sicily - Volcano larger than Washington, D.C., discovered CNN - June 23, 2006
The volcanic structure, which incorporates peaks previously thought to be separate volcanoes, was named Empedocles after the Greek philosopher who named the four classic elements of earth, air, fire and water. Legend has it that the philosopher died by throwing himself into Mount Etna, the nearby Sicilian volcano. Legend has it that the philosopher died by throwing himself into Mount Etna, the nearby Sicilian volcano. Giovanni Lanzafame, who works at the institute and led the research, said Empedocles was at least 400 meters (1,300 feet) high -- taller than the Eiffel Tower. The base of the structure was 30 km (18.6 miles) long and 25 km wide, spanning an area larger than the U.S. capital and making it Italy's largest underwater volcano.

But Lanzafame said Sicilians did not need to worry about the sleeping Empedocles. "At this point, there's no imminent danger of an eruption," he told Reuters. Lanzafame and another official said the volcano had numerous fumaroles, openings in the Earth's crust that emit steam and gases, like the ones at Yellowstone National Park in the United States. But they described it as largely inactive.The identification of Empedocles came during research into the submerged volcanic island of Ferdinandea just off Sicily's southern coast. Often held to be the tip of a small volcano, Lanzafame said it was just a part of Empedocles. Volcanic activity has raised the island out of the sea several times in recorded history, with underwater eruptions first described during the first Punic War of 264-241 B.C. Its emergence in 1831 caused months of international wrangling, with several nations making territorial claims before it submerged again. It is now about 7 meters below the surface of the water.

Volcano's lake turns bright red MSNBC - May 29, 2006
New Zealand - A lake atop a rumbling volcano on the South Pacific island of Ambae has changed color from blue to bright red, puzzling scientists.

Fossil "Pompeii" of Prehistoric Animals Named U.S. Landmark National Geographic - May 12, 2006
The U.S. Department of Interior has designated Nebraska's Ashfall Fossil Beds as a national natural landmark, the first such landmark to be designated in almost two decades. The site, near the town of Neligh (see Nebraska map), is home to hundreds of skeletons of extinct rhinos, camels, three-toed horses, and other vertebrates that were killed and buried by ash from a huge volcanic eruption some 12 million years ago.

Giant Deep-Sea Volcano With "Moat of Death" Found National Geographic - April 15, 2006

The volcano found in the South Pacific is dazzling scientists with its weird features, including a swirling vortex, strange animals, and a toxic zone that only one creature can survive.

Indonesia: 'Pompeii of the East' discovered - Lost Kingdom of Tambora BBC - February 28, 2006

An expedition to the site of the largest volcanic eruption in modern times has uncovered a lost kingdom. Wiped out in 1815 by the largest volcanic eruption in human history, the tiny kingdom is known only from a few reports from the Dutch and British colonial governments that ruled the East Indies in the 18th and early 19th centuries.

Lost civilization unearthed in Indonesia MSNBC - March 1, 2006

Scientists have found what they believe are traces of the lost Indonesian civilization of Tambora, which was wiped out in 1815 by the biggest volcanic eruption in recorded history. Mount Tambora's cataclysmic eruption on April 10, 1815, buried the inhabitants of Sumbawa Island under searing ash, gas and rock and is blamed for an estimated 88,000 deaths. The eruption was at least four times more powerful than Mount Krakatoa's in 1883. Guided by ground-penetrating radar, U.S. and Indonesian researchers recently dug in a gully where locals had found ceramics and bones. They unearthed the remains of a thatch house, pottery, bronze and the carbonized bones of two people, all in a layer of sediment dating to the

Volcanic Signatures Persist In Oceans Science Daily - February 10, 2006
Ocean temperatures might have risen even higher during the last century if it weren't for volcanoes that spewed ashes and aerosols into the upper atmosphere, researchers have found. The eruptions also offset a large percentage of sea level rise caused by human activity.

Researchers Discover Active Underwater Volcano near Samoan Island Chain Science Daily - May 26, 2005

Volcanic Soils Yield New Clues About The Emergence Of Powerful Chiefdoms In Hawaii Science Daily - June 2004
When the first Europeans arrived in the Hawaiian Islands in 1778, they found a thriving, complex society organized into chiefdoms whose economies were based primarily on farming. On the islands of Kauai, O'ahu and Molokai, the principal crop was taro - a starchy plant grown in irrigated wetlands where the supply of water was usually abundant. But on Maui and the Big Island of Hawaii, the main staple was the sweet potato - a more labor-intensive crop planted in relatively dry fields where success depended on adequate seasonal rainfall. Some anthropologists say that, by the late 1700s, sweet potato production had reached its maximum capacity. As a result, the chiefdoms on Maui and Hawaii began aggressively coveting the taro ponds that flourished on other islands. Pressure to find new sources of food may be one reason why Kamehameha, chief of the island of Hawaii, launched an invasion in 1795 that culminated in his eventual conquest of the entire island chain.

Active Volcano in Antarctic Sound Discovered AP - May 2004
A previously unknown underwater volcano has been discovered off the coast of Antarctica, the National Science Foundation said Thursday. The finding helps explain mariners' historical reports of discolored water in the area, the agency said. Material from underwater volcanoes is known to cause discoloration in water over them. The presence of a volcano was first suggested in sonar studies during a research cruise in January, but scientists were unable to return to the stormy waters of the region until April. The foundation said the research vessel Lawrence M. Gould was returning from a study of a collapsed ice self when it passed over the volcano. The research team led by Eugene Domack of Hamilton College in Clinton, N.Y., used a bottom-scanning video recorder, rock dredges and temperature probes to survey the sides and crest of the submarine peak. While large areas were colonized by submarine life, none was found on dark rock around the volcano itself, indicating that lava had flowed fairly recently.

In addition, dredges recovered abundant fresh basalt, a volcanic rock. It normally would be rapidly acted upon and transformed by seawater. Highly sensitive temperature probes moving continuously across the bottom of the volcano showed signs of geothermal heating of seawater, according to the agency. The volcano stands 2,300 feet above the seafloor and extends to within roughly 900 feet of the ocean surface. It is in an area known as Antarctic Sound, at the northernmost tip of Antarctica. There is no previous scientific record of active volcanoes in the region where the new peak was discovered. The volcano is located on the continental shelf, in the vicinity of a deep trough carved out by glaciers passing across the seafloor.

Early life thrived in lava flows BBC - April 2004

Geologists have discovered microscopic burrows where some of Earth's earliest life forms bored their way into volcanic glass 3.5 billion years ago.

Volcanic Mysteries Unraveled Underwater November 2003 - Science Daily
Almost all of the active volcanoes on Earth lie beneath miles of seawater at mid-ocean ridges, creating the long chain of volcanic mountains that encircles the Earth like the seam of a baseball.

Listening to 'singing volcanoes' BBC - February 2003

Infrasound - low-frequency sound beyond the scope of the human ear - is providing scientists with a new way of detecting tornadoes, incoming asteroids and erupting volcanoes. The researchers working in the field reviewed their progress at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) annual meeting in Denver. But atom bombs are not the only things the soon-to-be-completed 60 monitoring stations of the network will listen in on. There are important spin-offs for scientists who want to use the technology to devise new ways of detecting potentially hazardous, large-scale natural events. Infrasound consists of sound waves in frequencies below about 20 Hertz - out of the range of what humans can pick up. The waves have enormously long wavelengths, measured in kilometres, and are poorly absorbed. Infrasound waves triggered by a large asteroid impact high in the atmosphere, for example, can be detected traveling as many as five or six times around the globe before dissipating.

Four 'Dormant' volcanoes found to be active BBC - February 2003
Scientists say they have been shocked to discover that four dormant volcanoes in South America are in fact active. Researchers used satellite imaging techniques to look at movements in the ground, and they say their results have implications for volcanic areas around the world. Nine hundred volcanoes in the Andes mountains in Chile were scrutinized. Satellites took pictures of the same landscape at different intervals and researchers compared them. Any geological changes between the pictures were shown as what is called a radar interference fringe. This looks rather like the patterns made by a drop of oil in a puddle, and tells scientists that the ground is moving.

Etna Volcano Becoming Dangerous, Experts Warn February 2003 - National Geographic
The current eruption of Sicily's Mount Etna, which began on October 27 of last year, has officially ended, according to volcanologists at the Instituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia. The bad news is that the eruptions that took place in 2001 and 2002-2003 were two of the most explosive of the last several centuries, and that pattern is likely to continue, said a team of four volcanologists with Italy's volcano research agency.

Hawaii's Kilauea Lava Flow: 20 Years and Counting National Geographic - January 2003
Hawaii's Kilauea volcano erupted 20 years ago today - and hasn't stopped issuing lava since. For much of that time, volcanologists Steve and Donna O'Meara have lived and worked on the mountain's flanks, witnessing the ongoing spectacle of the Kilauea eruption.

World's 'oldest' volcanic rocks December 2002 - BBC

The rocks date back almost four billion years were discovered in northern Quebec.

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Early warning system for Stromboli BBC - January 2003

A volcanic island submerged off the coast of Sicily for the last 170 years could reappear in the coming weeks if furious seismic rumblings continue

Scientists witness birth of new island   BBC - May 24, 2000

The dramatic birth of a new volcanic island in the Pacific has been witnessed by an international team of scientists. The rare event was captured on film by researchers during an expedition to the Solomon Islands. The Commonwealth Science and Industrial Research Organization's (Csiro) Research Vessel Franklin, based in Australia, found the Kavachi seamount had entered a new phase of eruptive activity after nine years of apparent dormancy. Molten ash shot 500 metres (1,600 ft) into the air every five minutes of the team's 20-hour visit.

The peak of the volcano was forming a sandy, ashen beach two metres below sea level, with its regular, violent, bomb-like eruptions. Kavachi is 35 km (21 miles) from the closest island, in the western Solomons, and was first surveyed in the 1950s. Dr McInnes said, "It was magma being ejected from the top of a magma chamber, which is below sea level. This magma has a lot of gas in it so it's a very explosive mixture whenever it comes close to the surface. We were able to approach to within 750 m (2,500 ft) of the erupting centre. We found that the volcano had grown dramatically since it was last surveyed in 1984. Using Franklin to systematically sample freshly formed volcanic rocks from the flanks of an erupting submarine volcano is an unprecedented opportunity in the field of geology. We detected numerous chemical and particle plumes in the water that extend at least 5 km (16 miles) from the centre of the volcano. This has been a great opportunity for us to obtain fundamental data on dynamic volcanic inputs to the ocean environment."