Nature’s Amazing Yet Devastating Phenomenon: Volcano

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There are two different views of volcanoes. Some people see it as a thing of beauty, traveling around the world just to witness volcanic eruptions. Many others see volcanoes as a disaster waiting to happen. A volcano is a mountain that opens downloads to a pool of molten rock beneath the earth. Eruptions occur when there a build up in pressure inside a volcano, causing gas and rock to shoot up through the opening and spill over.

Volcanic eruptions however come in many different ways. Volcanic eruptions around the world have also taken many lives and caused billions of dollars worth of damage. Some are on a large scale while others occur on a much milder scale, like the volcanoes in Hawaii. Super-volcanoes are large but infrequent volcanoes such as Lake Toba.

Lake Toba lies in the northern part of the Indonesian island of Sumatra in South East Asia. It is one of the largest natural features of the Southern hemisphere and is clearly visible from space. Popular as one of the tourist landmarks in Indonesia, this 100 km long and 30 km wide lake, is also home to terrifying mystery- a mystery that lurked undiscovered for millennia. Miles beneath the placid surface of Lake Toba lies the cause of one of the greatest natural disasters ever, more powerful than anything else on earth.

The eruption occurred millions of years ago, and some scientist even believe that the eruption may have even killed millions. However, what’s really scary is that it could happen again! Beneath Lake Toba, the subduction zone is still clashing, bringing the possibility that the magma chamber could still come alive. With one hundred times as many people on earth as when it first erupted, the effects on the world would be catastrophic should it erupt again. Food resources, climate and water availability would all be affected.

Volcanic eruptions sometimes also occur unexpectedly and when nobody is prepared for it. The slumbering volcanic peak of Mount St Helens in Washington is one of America’s most beautiful national forests and a magnet for vacationers seeking the great outdoors. However, on 18 May, 1980, the volcano erupted without warning. Within just four minutes, the blast flattened 570 square kilometers, taking the lives of 57 people. The final cost of the disaster was an estimated one billion dollars, but the toll on those affected is impossible to calculate. Why did it take everyone surprise and why did nobody predict such as a catastrophic eruptions?

The Mount St Helens eruption was seen as a wake up call for volcanology. Scientists now understand how dramatically super-volcanoes can affect life on earth and they are racing to map out the lifecycle of this terrifying natural phenomenon and attempt to predict the next eruption, particularly for super-volcanoes like Lake Toba.

We are all vulnerable should another super-volcano come to life. How many will perish the next time a super-volcano erupts? How much destruction would it cause? What effect will it have on nature? How will it affect us?