Mount Merapi Eruption Churns Out Lava and Ash: New Report Details

Mount Merapi Eruption Churns Out Lava and Ash: New Report Details

A violent volcanic eruption on Indonesia’s angry Mount Merapi boiled and sent flows of and lava down its slopes, creating havoc.

Volcanic gas and avalanches of rock were discharged from Mount Merapi’s actively increasing lava dome right inside the crater. A new report is now available.

Here is what you need to know.

Violent Eruption Brings Havoc

Mount Merapi’s peak is close to Yogyakarta, an old city of several hundred thousand people gathered up in a pretty big metro area on Java Island.

The region is the seat of royal dynasties and a well-known center of the Javanese culture.

Back in 2010, Mount Merapi struck so hard that it killed 347 people. Villagers residing on the mountain’s slopes had to leave their homes and stay 5 kilometers away from the crater’s mouth.

Now, another violent eruption has been reported, and it’s tragic, by the looks of it.

New eruption details

According to recent data from Yogyakarta’s Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation Center, the lava dome had been partially released since Sunday (August 8), when the most recent eruption started.

Researchers observed that the mountain discharged at least 3 new pyroclastic flows on Monday.

FACT: pyroclastic flows are avalanches of rock, volcanic gas, and ash.

Source: Unsplash

Previous data reveals that Mount Merapi is one of Indonesia’s most volatile volcanoes (of over 120 active volcanoes).

Also, as per Yogyakarta’s Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation Center, Mount Merapi is actually one of the most active volcanoes in the world, making it extremely dangerous and threatening. Usually, the eruptions last for several days.

The Center didn’t raise the alert status this week. Mount Merapi’s eruption is the second-biggest of 4 levels since it started erupting back in 2020, in November.

What does the current situation mean for Indonesia?

The region is an archipelago of 270 million people and is prone to volcanic and earthquakes activity. The reason?

Apparently, Indonesia lies along the Pacific Ring of Fire, a series of seismic fault lines around the ocean.

 

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