In Hawaii, the summit of Mauna Loa, Earth’s largest active volcano, erupted at 11:30 p.m. local time Sunday (9:30 a.m. Monday in mainland Portugal), after 38 years of dormancy, the USGS announced. .
“At this time, lava flows are contained at the summit and do not threaten communities at the bottom of the slope,” said the notification on the Mauna Loa eruption. However, the USGS alerted residents to the possible presence of volcanic gases and ash, and the Hawaiian Emergency Management Agency has already, as a precaution, opened two shelters on the island, although it maintains that there are no signs of lava. Go to threaten populated areas. There are no evacuation orders at this time.
However, based on previous eruptions, the notification drew attention to the fact that the initial phases of this volcano’s eruption can be very dynamic and that the location and evolution of pyroclastic flows can change very quickly. the level of the Volcano alert It has already passed, however, from “yellow” to “red”.
USGS
The Hawaii Volcano Observatory (HVO) of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) has already conducted an aerial survey to assess the risks and come up with a more detailed description of the eruption. More than a dozen earthquakes of more than 2.5 magnitude have already been recorded Monday morning, one of which reached a magnitude of 4.2.
Historical records since 1843
Mauna Loa occupies more than half of the Hawaiian island, and is the largest in the archipelago, rising 4,170 meters above the Pacific Ocean. But the underwater part of the volcano drops another 5,000 meters to the sea floor, which, in turn, is lowered by another 8,000 meters by the massive mass of Mauna Loa. Therefore, from its base to its summit, Mauna Loa is more than 17,000 meters high.
USGS/Reuters
The last eruption of the volcano occurred in March-April 1984. “Mauna Loa is among The most active volcanoes on Earthhaving erupted 33 times since the historic eruption of 1843, is well documented,” asserts V. Site From the US Geological Survey. It has already produced very large and huge basalt flows, which since 1868 have reached the ocean eight times. In the last eruption, in 1984, lava was 7.2 kilometers from Hilo, the largest population center on the island. “
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