Chile-volcano-causes-ash-cloud-lightning-tears-sky-apart

These extraordinary images show the full force of Mother Nature as a Chilean volcano erupts for the first time in 50 years.

Ash has been thrown six miles up into the sky and the South American government has ordered the evacuation of thousands of residents.

Winds fanned the ash toward neighbouring Argentina, darkening the sky in the ski resort city of San Carlos de Bariloche, The pictures are remarkable

Read more: www.dailymail.co.uk...

Originally posted by HeluvaStorm
These extraordinary images show the full force of Mother Nature as a Chilean volcano erupts for the first time in 50 years.

Ash has been thrown six miles up into the sky and the South American government has ordered the evacuation of thousands of residents.

Winds fanned the ash toward neighbouring Argentina, darkening the sky in the ski resort city of San Carlos de Bariloche, in the centre of the


These pictures are remarkable

Read more: www.dailymail.co.uk...

Thank you for sharing!

These photos are unbelievably beautiful, yet scary at the same time.

Whilst (like most media) their stories can never be relied upon for factual accuracy, the one thing the Daily Mail does really well is finding the most spectacular photos.

Thanks for sharing

Wow. This doesn't even look real! These pictures are incredibly beautiful, thanks for sharing!
Hopefully everyone in the surrounding area got out when they needed to.

Thank you for sharing.
Those images are amazing and beautiful at the same time.

Holy mother of ganja!! That is crazy stuff!

Thank you OP for sharing this with us.
I've never seen such breathtaking pictures of lightning before

reply to post by fltcui


I wonder why lightening appears during a volcano eruption, any scientific minds wish to explain?

Originally posted by HeluvaStorm
reply to post by fltcui

 

I wonder why lightening appears during a volcano eruption, any scientific minds wish to explain?

edit on 7-6-2011 by HeluvaStorm because: (no reason given)

Greetings:

We'll take a swing at this, as, interestingly enough, we were researching "radiation" in all its forms and went down a rabbit hole and encountered "volcano lightning" - and became instantly hooked on the awesome power and beauty of this phenomena and explored more and would like to share what we found.

What is "volcano lightning? First in a Series - Spectacular Chili Volcano Lightning Photos

First, we'll check out the redoubtable Wikipedia to see what "volcano lightning" really is.

(...)
Lightning can also occur within the ash clouds from volcanic eruptions,[5] or can be caused by violent forest fires which generate sufficient dust to create a static charge.[1][6]
How lightning initially forms is still a matter of debate.[7] Scientists have studied root causes ranging from atmospheric perturbations (wind, humidity, friction, and atmospheric pressure) to the impact of solar wind and accumulation of charged solar particles.[4] Ice inside a cloud is thought to be a key element in lightning development, and may cause a forcible separation of positive and negative charges within the cloud, thus assisting in the formation of lightning.[4]
Volcano Lightning - Wiki

And,
New Lightning Type Found Over Volcano?

Photograph courtesy Bretwood Higman

Lightning illuminates a giant ash cloud during the eruption of Alaska's Redoubt Volcano on April 14, 2009.

It comes as no shock that a potentially new type of volcanic lightning had long eluded scientists: The bolts can be as short as about 3 feet (1 meter) long and last just a few milliseconds.

But advanced instruments and a two-month heads-up allowed researchers to finally confirm the "teeny little sparks" during a recent eruption of Alaska's Redoubt Volcano. When Redoubt first began to rumble in late January 2009, volcanic seismologist Steve McNutt and colleagues scrambled to install various instruments near the volcano's vents.

Their quick efforts yielded unprecedented data when the mountain finally blew its top in March 2009.

McNutt, of the Alaska Volcano Observatory, had observed similar sparks during a 2006 eruption of Alaska's Augustine Volcano. The Redoubt Volcano data confirms the lightning's existence, he said.

Lightning, by Any Other Name

The newfound bolts join two other types of volcanic lightning, McNutt said: Large, spectacular "natural fireworks" that sometimes accompany eruptions and an intermediate type, which shoots up from a volcano's vents and reaches a length of about 1.8 miles (3 kilometers).

Both types of bigger, more obvious bolts occur when water droplets and ice particles interact with the volcano's plume of electrically charged ash, creating a sort of "dirty thunderstorm," McNutt said.

It's unknown how the smaller sparks form, though one possibility is that electrically charged silica—an ingredient of magma—interacts with the atmosphere when it bursts out of Earth's crust, he said.

Still, it's hard to say if the sparks indeed represent a new type of lightning, noted Martin Uman, a lightning expert at the University of Florida in Gainesville. That's because lightning—basically any discharge of electricity—has no scientific definition.

Reader Bonus!
Interactive: Make your own lightning strike

Lightning Safety Boon

(...)
No matter what you call them, the tiny sparks near volcanoes' vents may offer a safety benefit, added Uman, who was not involved in the Redoubt Volcano study.

When a volcano gives off a hint of an impending eruption—called a precursor event—scientists could set up instruments near the vents to detect sparks as an eruption begins, which would then alert officials even sooner, he said.

Such a warning could be critical for air traffic, since ash emitted by volcanoes is especially hazardous to jet engines.

There's also an aesthetic pleasure in watching lightning events: Any kind of volcanic lightning is just "supergorgeous," Uman said. "It's one of our best natural phenomena."

To be continued...

tfw

(continued from previous page)

And,

Volcanic Lightning Sparked by "Dirty Thunderstorms," Study Finds

When it comes to volcanic eruptions, mile-high ash clouds and geysers of molten lava grab most of the attention.
But lightning often accompanies the blasts, and new research suggests that the electrical bolts may be part of a system dubbed a dirty thunderstorm.

A view of the north side of the Mount Augustine volcano in Alaska shows the tall plume of ash generated by an eruption on January 12, 2006.

Using radio waves to study the ash cloud, researchers have made some of the first direct observations of volcanic lightning. Their study reveals two distinct types of this poorly understood phenomenon and suggests it occurs due to "dirty thunderstorm" activity in the plume.

BONUS!

Volcanoes Interactive Feature

(...)
The study, to be reported tomorrow in the journal Science, describes some of the first direct observations made of volcanic lightning.

The findings offer a rare glimpse of this poorly understood phenomenon, including evidence of one type of lightning never seen before by scientists.

"It's the first real look at the details of at least one kind of volcano lightning—though of course every volcano might not be the same," said Martin Uman, co-director of the University of Florida Lightning Research program, who was not involved in the study.

January 13, 2006—It's been 20 years since Alaskans have felt its rumble or the grit of its ash, but Augustine Volcano has roared back to life, erupting three times in the past three days.

Static Charge?

The team behind the new research used radio waves to detect the previously unknown type of lightning as it flashed from the crater of Alaska's Mount Augustine volcano.

"During the eruption there were lots of small lightning [bolts] or big sparks that probably came from the mouth of the crater and entered the [ash] column coming out of the volcano," said study co-author Ronald J. Thomas, an atmospheric physicist at the state engineering university New Mexico Tech.

"So we saw a lot of electrical activity during the eruption and even some small flashes going from the top of the volcano up into the cloud. That hasn't been noticed before."

The new evidence suggests that the eruption produced a large amount of electric charge.

"We're not sure if it comes out of the volcano or if it is created just afterwards. One of the things we have to find out is what's generating this charge," Thomas added.
(...)
The volcanic eruption itself is unable to generate sufficient electric charge to spark lightning for long after the eruption occurs or far from the crater, the researchers said.

Instead the scientists believe that electric charges are generated when rock fragments, ash, and ice particles in the plume collide to produce static charges—in much the same way that ice particles collide to create charge in regular thunderstorms.

"As the plume started going downwind, it seemed to have a life of its own and produced some 300 more or less normal [lightning bolts]," the University of Florida's Uman said.

"The implication is that it has produced more charge than it started with. Otherwise [the plume] couldn't continue to make lightning."
(...)
Continued>

For your edification and enjoyment:

Photograph by Francisco Negroni, Agenci Uno/European Pressphoto Agency

Spectacular! A time-lapse photo shows lightning bolts striking around the Puyehue-Cordon Caulle volcanic chain.

Volcanic Lightning

In a scene no human could have witnessed, an apocalyptic agglommeration of lightning bolts illuminates an ash cloud above Chile's Puyehue volcano on Sunday.

The minutes-long exposure shows individual bolts as if they'd all occurred at the same moment and, due to the Earth's rotation, renders stars (left) as streaks. Lightning to the right of the ash cloud appears to have illuminated nearby clouds—hence the apparent absence of stars on that side of the picture.

After an ominous series of earthquakes Saturday morning, the volcano erupted that afternoon, convincing authorities to evacuate some 3,500 area residents. Eruptions over the course of the weekend resulted in heavy ashfalls, including in Argentine towns 60 miles (a hundred kilometers) away.

To be continued...

tfw

(Continued from previous page)

Other views and commentary:

Chile volcano causes ash cloud and lightning tears the sky apart


When all hell breaks loose: Lightning tears the sky apart above the glow of the Chilean volcano.

Flames reach up to the heavens as lightning flashes criss-cross the sky.

These extraordinary images show the full force of Mother Nature as a Chilean volcano erupts for the first time in 50 years.

Ash has been thrown six miles up into the sky and the South American government has ordered the evacuation of thousands of residents.

Winds fanned the ash toward neighbouring Argentina, darkening the sky in the ski resort city of San Carlos de Bariloche, in the centre of the country, and its airport has also been closed.

Chile Volcano Plume Explodes With Lightning

Photograph by Ivan Alvarado, Reuters

Snap, Crackle, Pop

Lightning crackles around a miles-high ash plume above Chile's Puyehue volcano (map) on Saturday.

A volcanic lightning storm isn't "unlike a regular old thunderstorm," Martin Uman, a lightning expert at the University of Florida in Gainesville, told National Geographic News in 2010.

The same ingredients are present: water droplets, ice, and possibly hail—all interacting with each other and with particles, in this case ash from the eruptions, to cause electrical charging, Uman said.

The eruption in the Puyehue-Cordon Caulle volcanic chain, about 575 miles south of the capital, Santiago, also prompted authorities to close a busy border crossing into Argentina.

It was not immediately clear which of the chain's four volcanoes had erupted because of ash cover and weather conditions. The chain last saw a major eruption in 1960.

Nature's force: Lightning and volcanic fire is seen amid and underneath a towering cloud of ash. It is the first time the volcano has erupted in 50 years.

Local media said the smell of sulphur hung in the air and there was constant seismic activity.

'The Cordon Caulle (volcanic range) has entered an eruptive process, with an explosion resulting in a 10-kilometre-high gas column,' the state emergency office ONEMI said.

Incredible lightening bolts strike around the plume of volcanic ash and smoke.

This development is the latest volcanic activity to affect the country. Three years ago, Chile's Chaiten volcano erupted spectacularly for the first time in thousands of years, spewing molten rock and a vast cloud of ash that reached the stratosphere and was visible from space.

It also drifted over neighbouring Argentina, coating towns. Chile's Llaima volcano, one of South America's most active, also erupted that year and again in 2009.

An extraordinary cloud formation is created by the ash rising several miles into the atmosphere.

Chile's chain of about 2,000 volcanoes is the world's second largest after Indonesia. Some 50 to 60 are on record as having erupted, and 500 are potentially active.

It was the latest in a series of volcanic eruptions in Chile in recent years. Chile's Chaiten volcano erupted spectacularly in 2008 for the first time in thousands of years, spewing molten rock and a vast cloud of ash that reached the stratosphere.

The ash also swelled a nearby river and ravaged a nearby town of the same name.

The ash cloud from Chaiten coated towns in Argentina and was visible from space. Chile's Llaima volcano, one of South America's most active, erupted in 2008 and 2009.

Chile's chain of about 2,000 volcanoes is the world's second largest after Indonesia. Some 50 to 60 are on record as having erupted, and 500 are potentially active.

Read more: Chaiten

After 9,000 years of silence, Chile's Chaitin volcano (pictured on May 3) is erupting with lava, ashand lightning.

Since the volcano awoke on May 2, it has continued erupting intermittently, blanketing the area in ash and forcing more than 4,000 people to flee.


Photographed on May 4 from the evacuated town of Chaitin, Chile's Chaitin volcano has sent ash as high as 12 miles (19 kilometers) into the sky, according to May 6 reports.

Radiocarbon dating suggests that the volcano last erupted around 7420 B.C., according to the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program.

How beautiful our Mother Planet Earth is...

To be continued...

tfw

reply to post by thorfourwinds


These pictures are breath taking..Thank you so much...Nature can be so so beautiful

(continued from previous page)


Caught in the sunlight: Beautiful but deadly, the cloud turns fiery red in the sunshine as the eruption continues to belch ash skyward.


Smiling lightning: As molten rock and gases are ejected from the core of the volcano below, what appears to be a 'have a nice day' face is formed from the electrically charged air.

Read more: more

Photograph by Ivan Alvarado, Reuters

Apocalyptic Plume
A Lord of the Rings-worthy plume rises roughly six miles (ten kilometers) above Chile's Puyehue volcano (map) Sunday. As of Monday, activity at the volcano appeared to have tapered off, according to Telam, Argentina's government news agency.

Even so, danger remains. In a statement on website of the regional government of Los Rios, Chile, for example, Governor Juan Andrés Varas warned that ash and potentially poisonous volcanic gases are slowly rolling toward a nearby valley.

"Fortunately, the valley doesn't drop abruptly, so we have time to evacuate," Varas was quoted as saying by CNN.

And, along the "Apocalyptic" theme: these are the uprising air/ash plumes from the volcano.


Pinatubo ash plume reaching a height of 19 km, 3 days before the climactic eruption of 15 June 1991.


Above cloud level, the plume from Puyehue-Cordon Caulle looks like a nuclear bomb has just exploded with its mushroom cloud bursting towards the skies.

more

And now, for something completely different, if we may beg your indulgence...

Somewhat off topic, but perhaps vitally important to, we, the people.

One might postulate and visualize that the same type of uprising air occurred at Fukushima Daiichi and helped spread the vaporized Plutonium and various other radioactive contaminants high into the atmosphere and into the Jet Stream - to fall on ALL of North America

- including ALL the people

- including ALL of the food growing in the fields

- including ALL the livestock in the fields

- including ALL our children

- and is continuing 24/7/365 unabated, with no solution...

TEPCO/JAPGOV admitted the technology "does not exist" to adequately address the situation - therefore no end is in sight... 24/7/365

[color=limegreen]This is utter insanity...
and we are ALL going to pay the price for this madness...
as NO ONE escapes the life-altering radiation.

In Peace, Love & Light

tfw

OOPS

double post

I never saw these images.. absolutely incredible! Thank you for sharing this.