Many predictions of the possible End of the World include the eruption of the Yellowstone supervolcano. But even though it is now over-hyped, there are many volcanoes on Earth that are a time bomb for nearby human settlements.
And so that your vacation is never marred by clouds of steam, ash and lava flows, we will tell you about the ten most dangerous volcanoes on Earth, near which you definitely shouldn’t take a selfie.
10. Galeras, Colombia
The stratovolcano with a large caldera is located west of the city of Pasto, and is one of the most active volcanoes in Colombia. It has been active for more than one million years and shows no signs of calming down in the 21st century.
In 1993, nine people died during the Galeras eruption, including six scientists, and in 2010, 9 (according to other sources, 8) thousand people were evacuated from the area near the volcano.
9. Klyuchevskaya Sopka, Russia
A selection of the most dangerous volcanoes on the planet could not do without a representative of Russia. Klyuchevskaya Sopka is one of the highest volcanoes on Earth, and the highest of the active ones on the Eurasian continent. It is located on the Kamchatka Peninsula, and, surprisingly, is covered with clean snow and ice crusts, which during an eruption can create an interesting contrast with ash and lava flows.
It can throw out a column of ash reaching a height of 8 kilometers. And it erupts periodically, approximately once every five years, since 1737 (this is only the first of the documented eruptions, and how many there were before is unknown). The most powerful of the eruptions occurred in the 19th century.
8. Kilauea, Hawaii
The name of this volcano is not very original, and in translation from Hawaiian means "belching", "spitting out". It is believed that it was chosen as a home by the local goddess of volcanoes.
Kilauea is the most active shield volcano on the island, erupting almost continuously from 1983 to 2018, causing much destruction as well as major earthquakes and fires.
Since 1912, the Hawaiian volcanic eruption has been monitored by the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.
7. Merapi, Indonesia
Merapi (meaning "mountain of fire") is one of Indonesia's most active volcanoes, having erupted for centuries. It is located near the center of the island of Java, about 32 kilometers north of the city of Yogyakarta.
One of the largest recorded eruptions occurred in 1637 and destroyed several towns and villages in Java.
The biggest risk associated with this volcano is the spread of pyroclastic flows, a mixture of volcanic gases, ash and rock debris that can travel at speeds of 700 km/h. In 2010, 353 people died from such flows.
6. Sakurajima, Japan
This active stratovolcano was a separate island until 1914, but lava flows connected it to the Osumi Peninsula.
The volcano has erupted almost continuously since 1955, posing a serious danger to nearby settlements, the largest of which is the city of Kagoshima (over 600 thousand residents).
It is no wonder that due to its danger, Sakurajima was included in the list of Volcanoes of the Decade in 1991.
5. Taal, Philippines
Living like a volcano is no longer a relevant expression for the residents of Taal Island, which is home to one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world. Philippine authorities have decided to ban the islanders from returning to the dangerous area and will provide them with houses further away from the volcano.
Taal woke up from hibernation on January 12 this year and threw out a column of ash to a height of one kilometer. Because of this, residents of the province of Batangas had to be urgently evacuated. And since the volcano has shown its nasty character more than once, the authorities decided to protect people from it once and for all.
4. Nyiragongo, Congo
Together with its neighbouring peak Nyamlaghila, Nyiragongo accounts for about 40% of all volcanic activity in Africa.
The peculiarity of this volcano is the incredibly liquid lava, which is explained by the small content of quartz in its composition. Due to its liquidity, the lava can rush down the slopes at a speed of up to 100 kilometers per hour.
3. Colima, Mexico
Mexico's most active volcano consists of two conical peaks, but only one is active.
From time to time (documented - since 1576) Colima reminds the locals of its existence by spewing ash, lava and smoke. Once it was able to throw out an ash-smoke column to a height of 10 kilometers.
2. Santorini, Greece
From the "young to early" volcanoes, whose main activity occurred in relatively recent times, we move on to the heavyweight, which was last active around 1645 BC.
It is the eruption of Santorini and the tsunami that followed that is considered to be the cause of the destruction of the Minoan civilization of Crete (but this is not certain). There is also a hypothesis that the memory of this catastrophe formed the basis of the legend of Atlantis.
Since then, Santorini has shown only occasional seismic activity and nothing that looks like an eruption is coming. However, volcanologists are constantly monitoring it.
1. Vesuvius, Italy
What is the most dangerous volcano in the world? The answer to this question depends on your definition of danger. A good indicator is the overall volcanic hazard posed by a volcano. This, in turn, is best described as a combination of the probability of an eruption, the size, and the potential damage from the volcano's activity. Supervolcanoes like Yellowstone, if they erupt, threaten life and property on a global scale.
But within the reasonable timeframe of our existence, the probability of such an explosion is extremely small, and humanity will likely find other ways to hurt itself long before a supervolcano does.
For this reason, the active volcano Vesuvius takes the top spot in this ranking. Its slopes and the immediate area around it are extremely densely populated; even the city of Naples is only about 15 km from the volcano. In the event of a major eruption, more than 3 million people could be at risk of death or, at best, losing everything they own.
Vesuvius has not erupted since 1944 and may remain dormant for a long time. But there is a hypothesis that it will wake up again, sooner or later (approximately decades to centuries, unlike the indefinitely long sleep of supervolcanoes). Currently, the activity of Vesuvius is monitored day and night by the Osservatorio Vesuviano center in Naples.
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