Shortly before 10:00 pm this Monday the Old Summit volcano, in La Palma, has stopped the emission of lava and ash.
Literally, it has stopped.
What seems to be a new volcanic phase has caught the experts by surprise that, at the moment, do not know what such inactivity is due and urge precautions and not lower the guard.
The Old Summit Volcano, in La Palma, has stopped its rashes this morning after sowing the devastation during the last eight days on the west side of the island, where the lava continues to advance slowly.
To be confirmed that eruptions have stopped once and for all, something that is not possible to know at this time, it would be the shortest volcanic episode on the island of La Palma since they have records.
So far, and from the seventeenth century, another six eruptions had been identified with a known duration, between 24 and 74 days.
The average is 55 days, while this would hardly have reached nine.
“We must be happy that it has stopped, if it was going to last a month, and it has been the most ephemeral volcano of the history of La Palma, because it is magnificent, because it will be good for the population,” says the Manuel Regueiro world,
President of the College of Geologists.
“What can reactivate? I am seeing two things: one, that the expansion of the terrain has come down; and two, that earthquakes are deeper. But I imagine that those who are around will already say what they think. I think that
It has stopped means that it no longer has the lava pressure and will not continue going out, because there is no indication that it has strength. ”
Even so, nothing can be ruled out in a phenomenon of these characteristics.
But the truth is that all indicators point out that the volcano has stopped.
“What can be left again? Unless the seismic and geophysical data will generally tell us, maybe it’s the end of the story, which is great, you have to be attentive, but earthquakes are very deep”,
SOPESA Regueiro.
“It gives the impression that it is going to stop, I hope you stop.”
“The earthquakes of the last days are already very profound, 10 or 15 kilometers,” explains the geologist.
“When the earthquakes are going to occur are very close to the surface and the deformation approaches 20 centimeters. That [it’s not like that] means that there is no lava pushing. It is what could be deduced from what
we are seeing”.
“The tremor yesterday already lowered by half, that means that there is no lava movement; and earthquakes are deeper, that indicates that it is not close to the surface, everything seems to indicate that this for, but we will have to see it”,
Concludes Regueiro, which is referred to the information that the authorities that are on the ground is given, and that at this time are assessing the situation.
The Volcanological Institute of Canarias, Involcan, has just confirmed that the volcanic tremor of the eruption of La Palma “has almost disappeared” as well as the stonbolian explosive activity.
Through your Twitter account, Involcan ratifies what is already appreciated in the surroundings of the volcano after disappearing the ash column that has been convened by the main cone formed in the cow head area, on the old summit.
The Scientific Committee of the Canaria Volcanic Risk Prevention Plan, Pevolca, is gathered at that time analyzing the situation, EFE report.
The smoke column that scattered ashes across the island has disappeared and as soon as activity is appreciated in the volcano, although it is not the first occasion since the beginning of the eruption in which these periods of inactivity occur.
“The apparent interruption of the eruption can indicate new phase, we should not lower the guard. It returns seismicity,” reports Volcanoes de Canarias.
Indeed, while seismicity has been reduced in the main mouth area, it has increased at a new point of the island, in FuenteCaliente, where 16 earthquakes have been registered in the last hours.
The most intense has been located at 06.05 hours and at a depth of 10 kilometers, and in general, all are above magnitude 2 and in depths that range between 9 and 13 kilometers.
The volcanic tremor in La Palma fell very significantly this morning, as indicated by National Geographic Institute (IGN).
According to the Volcanological Institute of Canary Islands, volcanic tremor is related to the intensity of the stombolian explosive activity of the volcano.
The experts are gathered at this time to analyze the reason for this paron in the volcano.
“The activity has been significantly reduced in the last hours in La Palma, we must be very vigilant of its evolution because the scenario can change rapidly,” affirm from the Geoscience Institute.
As explained in LASEXTA, the Geologist and Scientific Discharge Nahúm Méndez Chazarra, this paron can be worrisome, as it could assume that the volcano “is recharging”.
The hypotheses that shuffle the experts are that the volcano is being recharged from Magma, that there is a stopper, which has begun to go out or that the magma is moving to another place and there may be a rash elsewhere.
From the port of Tazacorte yes small columns of smoke are observed throughout the course of the main laundry that devastated the town of allow, that last night was about 1,600 meters from the coastline without having arrived at sea.
The Scientific Committee of the Canary Islands Volcanic Emergencies Plan (pevolca) warned last night that the arrival of lava to the sea could be a matter of hours, so it was ordered the neighbors of the nearest neighborhoods to stay inside their homes to avoid
The risks of gases that can be detached with the contact of lava with sea water.
