Japan after a series of recent earthquakes and indications of rising magma, is preparing itself to face the Sakurajima volcano on Kyushu Island.
The geological activity is similar to the explosive volcanic eruption that happened in 1914, which is also said to have claimed 35 lives. At present the Japanese meteorological agency has raised the alert level to 4 and asked nearby residents to evacuate the area.
The warning not only applies to the 4000 residents of the island but also to Sendai nuclear power plant, located 50 km away. Last but not least, depending on the winds and the volume of material ejected by the volcano, the city of Kagoshima could also be impacted.
It is reported that all of the recent earthquakes from Sakurajima have been centred only a few kilometres beneath the Minamidake vent of the volcano. But the strainmeters installed in the volcano have shown dramatic changes typically associated with magma rising into the main edifice of the volcano.
Aira Caldera is a gigantic volcanic eruption which devastated the region around 22,000 years ago. Sakurajima volcano is a part of this gigantic volcanic eruption. As a matter of relief, currently there are no alarming signs from the volcano. However, researchers state that such eruptions would be disastrous for the region. The last volcanic eruption was in 2013, that ejected ash over 20000 feet roughly 6 km towards the sky. But the 1914 eruption was classified as four on a Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) out of a potential 8.
The reality is that the scientists have still not been able to judge the size of the eruption, but the volcano is being watched very closely.
Source: ScienceAlert
