Indonesian airports reopen after Java volcano eruption. 15 February 2014Last updated at 01:05 ET BBC reporter Alice Budisatrijo: "Authorities are still imposing a 10km exclusion zone around the area of the volcano" Several airports have reopened on the Indonesian island of Java after being forced to close following the eruption of a volcano.
Correspondents say air quality has improved across Java, but cities and villages are still covered in a layer of dust and ash. Tens of thousands remain in shelters, facing medicine and blanket shortages. Supervolcano eruption mystery solved. 6 January 2014Last updated at 08:28 ET By James Morgan Science reporter, BBC News If the Yellowstone supervolcano erupted the impact would be catastrophic Scientists have made a breakthrough in their efforts to understand what causes so-called supervolcanoes to erupt.
Supervolcanoes are capable of eruptions thousands of times larger than normal outpourings. It was thought that an external trigger, such as an earthquake, was needed to bring about a giant blast. But tests at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble show the sheer volume of liquid magma is enough to cause a catastrophic super-eruption. Details of the research by a Swiss team appear in Nature Geoscience. Simulating the intense heat and pressure inside these "sleeping giants" could help predict a future disaster. Lead author Wim Malfait, of ETH Zurich, said: "We knew the clock was ticking but we didn't know how fast: what would it take to trigger a super-eruption?
California tests natural disaster early warning system. 2 January 2014Last updated at 00:27 GMT By Rebecca Morelle Science reporter, BBC World Service The system was used to forecast flash floods in California An early warning system for earthquakes, tsunamis and floods is being trialled in the US.
Thousands in El Salvador flee erupting Chaparrastique volcano. 29 December 2013Last updated at 17:09 ET Cameras filmed clouds of black smoke billowing from the volcano Thousands of people in eastern El Salvador are leaving their homes after a volcano erupted on Sunday morning.
Residents in the coffee-producing region said they had heard a powerful explosion before the Chaparrastique volcano began spewing hot ash and smoke into the air. No one has been hurt, say the authorities. Anyone living in a 3km (2 mile) radius will be evacuated. Yellowstone supervolcano 'even more colossal' 10 December 2013Last updated at 20:36 ET By Rebecca Morelle Science reporter, BBC World Service Hot springs are surface evidence of the huge magma chamber that sits beneath Yellowstone The supervolcano that lies beneath Yellowstone National Park in the US is far larger than was previously thought, scientists report.
A study shows that the magma chamber is about 2.5 times bigger than earlier estimates suggested. A team found the cavern stretches for more than 90km (55 miles) and contains 200-600 cubic km of molten rock. The findings are being presented at the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in San Francisco. Prof Bob Smith, from the University of Utah, said: “We’ve been working there for a long time, and we’ve always thought it would be bigger... but this finding is astounding. " If the Yellowstone supervolcano were to blow today, the consequences would be catastrophic.
Now researchers believe they have a better idea of what lies beneath the ground. News - Indonesia's Mount Sinabung volcano erupts 6 more times. Powerful bursts of hot ash and gravel erupted from a rumbling volcano in western Indonesia early Monday, sending panicked villagers streaming down the sides of the mountain.
Six new eruptions in the morning sent lava and searing gas tumbling up to 1.5 kilometres down the slopes of Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra province. Volcanic material spewed as high as 2,000 metres into the air a day after authorities had raised the volcano's alert status to the highest level. About 15,000 people have been evacuated from 17 villages in the danger zone five kilometres around the crater, National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said.
The evacuation zone was expanded from three kilometres. Thick, gray ash covered villages, farms and trees as far as 70 kilometres north of Mount Sinabung's crater, hitting the towns of Binjai and Langkat. Mount Sinabung's eruptions created an eight kilometre plume of ash, as thousands of residents remain in temporary shelters. Indonesia raises Sumatra volcano alert to highest status. 25 November 2013Last updated at 01:53 ET People evacuate the area around the volcano Indonesian officials have raised the alert for the Mount Sinabung volcano in North Sumatra to the highest level.
The status was raised from "stand-by" to "caution" - the highest alert for volcanic activity - on Sunday. People have also been warned to stay at least 5km (3 miles) from the crater. Mt Sinabung has been showing signs of life since September, after being dormant for three years. More than 15,000 villagers in the area had already been moved to temporary shelters, disaster management officials said in a statement. Airlines have also been advised not to fly near the area. Volcanic eruption gives birth to 'new island' in Japan.