El Hierro

[jand]

volcanoworldpress

El Hierro – Missing facts and what's up

Posted on November 19, 2011

I have for many reasons not written about El Hierro. There are a couple of reasons for that omission. The first one is that it would mainly be speculation about what is happening there. The main reason for it being speculation is that there is not a lot that we do know. The second reason is that the powers that be seem to hide parts of the information that would be needed to write about it really.

I will though write about what I do know.

As some of you have noticed, I have a couple of sources sending me behind the scenes information. They would be in a world of problem if I released all the information I have seen. The information is ranging from inside memos and reports to unreleased photographic evidence of what is happening. Since I grew up in a publishing family, I know the importance of securing the safety of sources, so I will not ever release the material I have gotten. And since I am a Swedish citizen my protection is absolute by law regarding the protection of sources. Nothing can force me to release their identities.

Both sources have sent me memos pointing to IGN editing away shallow earthquakes of lesser magnitude in the El Golfo area. Lurking of course went and checked the earthquake list of IGN to the spectral plot of the tremoring, and found "oddities", that seem to confirm the memos.

Secondly, I have received undisputable photographic evidence of a large gas vent that was open during the time of the large, totally saturating, tremoring that occurred on the sixteenth and seventeenth this month.  The photographic material shows that during this time Bob released very large pyroclasts (floating stones), that surfaced and sank after a while. The pyroclasts was large as furniture. Also, the water was turning red during the activity. But the most important material was showing a 100 by 100 meter large gas vent that had opened up adjacent to Roques de Salmor in El Golfo. The imagery also showed gas venting along a fissure on the northern rock face of Roques de Salmor Minor. There is no doubt about it.
The area of Roques de Salmor is closed off, everyone around has been moved away, and the tunnel leading in and out of the El Golfo area has been closed down due to the very high gas levels.



At the same time the powers that be released a report stating that gas levels had dropped, and that there was no second source of tremoring. This is a willful attempt at disseminating the truth. As we know Lurking have backtracked the data given from the stations and found a probable northern second source of tremoring. There was/is a second vent releasing large amounts of gas that was/is the most likely source of the tremoring.

I find the behavior of the powers that be in the area to be totally disgusting. One should never let a natural disaster become a way for personal promotion, and making politics out of human lives in danger is the lowest thing one can do. They should be utterly ashamed of themselves.

CARL

[fifi]

Hi Tamara, because of the ban on speaking about  or showing any information which could be alarming to the population it was decided that anything Public had to be passed by PEVLOCA. PEVLOCA usually only provide information at the last possible moment. The two main scientific bodies have fallen out over the handling of the situation. Information about Iceland (one example given, is readily available to the Public) and yet when they try to gain access to their own Island they find that sections are cut out or unavailable to them. They are obviously using other countries public information as a precedent when demanding their right to up to date and accurate information. I didnt understand the Swedish bit either.

What would I do about IGN information ? I would make it available to the Public. The Government have already been caught lying about the so called "missing information" which was vital.

What would I have done about the whole situation? This is a simple one for me to answer....I would have paid for the Telephonica ship which had the proper ROVs (underwater cameras) several months ago to map the area on a regular basis.

 The Government backed out of the deal. Instead they sent the Ramon Margalef which was unable to enter the eruption area .

 I find it totally frustrating that in this day and age they do not have one iota of evidence as to the exact size  of the volcano cones and the locations of the vents. The combination of lack of evidence, incorrect data, and the conflict between the Scientific bodies has been a disgrace.

Volcanology is not an exact science but inorder to have any hope of accurate predictions "assumed sizes" should not be used. (I am referring to the fact that the cone was assumed to be one metre wide and then was "aparently" 120 times wider and also to the "assumption" about the amount of magma being produced which then was later "assumed again" to be 20 times greater.)

As an observer I find the situation totally frustrating and am hoping that the new ship will finally provide some real proof of the size, film what is going on under the sea and finally put the Islanders minds at rest (they are sick of being duped)

[jand]

Well said Fifi thats why you are head of the FIJA detective agency !!!!!!!

[fifi]

PS....Good morning everyone.[]

[fifi]

quote:Originally posted by jand

Well said Fifi thats why you are head of the FIJA detective agency !!!!!!!

Oh thank you jand, post gracefully accepted.[][][][]


        ................

 30/11  Earthquake report

The text below was written earlier today by Mr. José Luis Barrera Morate, a Spanish geologist (Vice-President of the College of Spanish Geologists)  who specialized in volcanology and also made 54 geologic maps of the Canary Islands.

    "It was quite surprising that the Canary Islands authorities have adopted measures to lift the restrictions on travel and movement for the population of the island of El Hierro. Traffic restrictions in the Los Roquillos tunnel have ended, but not the security issues inside and outside of the tunnel, and a mandatory evacuation for residents of La Restinga and Frontera also been lifted.
    According to these measures, it would appear that nothing is happening on the island and everything is returning to normal. But the reality is somewhat different. For much less than what is happening now in the seismic-volcanic crisis, La Restinga was hurriedly evacuated, as were some houses in Fronterea for fear of landslides, and the tunnel was closed when the first stains appeared in the Las Calmas sea. What happened to change the criteria and decide that the risk has ended? Well I certainly don't know, because the crisis continues, and if not, let's look at the parameters:
    • The tremor has not ceased in the submarine eruption and, instead of diminishing, it is increasing slowly but it is increasing (IGN information on 27th, 28th and 29th).
    • The deformation in the area of El Golfo is continuing (information from IGN).
    • Earthquakes, though less frequent, have reached dangerous magnitudes of 3.2 on the Richter scale (felt by the population) in the early hours of the 29th (information from IGN).
    • CO2 emissions continue to rise progressively throughout the island (information ITER). According to the data, the diffuse emission of CO2 from the volcanic structure has now reached the 2398 ± 115 tons a day when normal values are 345 tons per day. This indicates that the pressure of this component in the magmatic-hydrothermal system beneath the island is increasing due to magma movement from deeper to more shallow positions.
    • The projection of pyroclasts at sea on Sunday, November 27, was the largest since the start of the crisis. Basanite fragments (without other white rock like the first ones, please note) have reached up to 1 m in size! Incredible if, indeed, the submarine crater is 200 meters deep. Could another eruptive vent have opened closer to the surface? Is the eruptive fissure progressing along the submarine ridge? No doubt we need new bathymetry in the area of the eruption to confirm the actual morphometry of the existing volcanic cones.
    Given the values of these parameters ... why would they relax the atmosphere and the measures of prevention on the island? What has changed to lift almost all the restrictions? Well, I would have to say that it is dangerous to create an atmosphere of false security in these crisis situations. It is good that people are getting used to living with the danger in light of the information provided by the scientists and authorities, but ... to live with the risk? It is foolhardy."

[jand]

Update 30/11 – 09:19
 - Ramon Margalef is currently on the stain (the proof below ! )

When did this ship arrive back in El Hierro?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUcJi5Wtb8o

[kevin2003]

quote:Originally posted by jand

I am familiar with water hammer and chattering pipes

[kevin2003]

quote:Originally posted by tamara_k

So, who has forced whom to do what exactly?

check words of Ian Carson, posted by jand, in the beginning of this page - "The authorities seem very well prepared and spare no expense in ensuring the safety of the population whilst keeping them 'on board' and informed. I have been very impressed.". So, he was impressed, an you, for instance, are not, right? Assuming "the authorities" care about impressing you or jand - what would you have them do? Just out of curiosity?

[kevin2003]

quote:Originally posted by tamara_k

ok, jand, so Ian is "just a visitor". And you are not even "just a visitor" to El Hierro, right? So, can you please tell me what exactly you want the authorities to do to be impressed.

Forget "exactly", approximately will do.

Also - about who is forced whom to do what again? Are you suggesting that Carl was forced to do something by swedish law, as he is swedish? Otherwise how swedish comes into it at all?

[kevin2003]

quote:Originally posted by jand

I find the behavior of the powers that be in the area to be totally disgusting. One should never let a natural disaster become a way for personal promotion, and making politics out of human lives in danger is the lowest thing one can do. They should be utterly ashamed of themselves.

CARL

[woe10]

[fifi]

Photos taken yesterday. Fantastic colours.[]

[jand]

Thanks for the photos Fifi.

From the webcams we cannot see any of this at all.

[fifi]

Yes its a pity we cant see all the beautiful colours on the webcam jand. There has been quite a bit of activity near the harbour wall to the right this morning.

[kevin2003]

[jand]

More on Drumbeats from sciencedaily.com

When a volcano such as Mount St Helens erupts, it can cause a series of shallow, repetitive earthquakes at intervals so regular that they've been called "drumbeat earthquakes." Until now, scientists generally believed that these earthquakes were caused by the jerky movements of a solid plug of molten rock traveling up from the volcano's core, a process known as the stick-slip model.

Modeling of seismic data collected by Waite and colleagues dispute that explanation. "The regularity and similarity of the shallow earthquakes seem consistent with a stick-slip model," said Waite. Broadband measurements indicated that the energy is concentrated in a short bandwidth—between .5 and 2 Hz—and the earthquakes have nearly identical wave forms. Interestingly, the first motions observed at all of the seismic stations were the same.

"But this is not typical of a stick-slip event," Waite said. "Rather, it suggests a source with a net volume change, such as a resonating fluid-filled crack."

The fluid in the crack most likely is steam, derived from the magma and combined with water vaporized by the heat of the molten rock. A continuous supply of heat and fluid keeps the crack pressurized and the "drumbeats" beating, Waite explained.

"The pressurized crack in our model is filled with steam that could conceivably drive a small explosive eruption if the pattern (of earthquakes) we observe is disturbed," he noted. Mount St. Helens erupted violently in 1980, losing nearly 1,000 feet of its cone-shaped top.

"The cause of Mount St. Helens earthquakes during the 2004-2008 eruption has been a matter of great debate," said Seth Moran, the principal USGS seismologist monitoring the current eruption. "Greg collected a fantastic dataset with temporary seismometers and used highly sophisticated modeling techniques to produce a robust and intriguing model for the process responsible for those earthquakes. His model is somewhat different from the hypothesis that many other Mount St. Helens researchers have been using," the seismologist went on to say, "and we are adjusting our understanding of the mechanics underlying the current eruption to incorporate his results."

Waite's research was conducted during a Mendenhall Postdoctoral Fellowship with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Waite's co-author, Chouet, who also works for the USGS, proposed a similar seismological model for volcanoes in Hawaii, where the lava is much more fluid and flows more easily. This is the first time the model has been applied to volcanoes like Mount St. Helens, with slow-flowing, sticky lava

[jand]

http://www.ovsicori.una.ac.cr/informes_prensa/2010/turrialba_boletin_tecnico_10marzo2010.pdf

Have a look at this link and scroll down you will come to a graph in Turquoise and Grey (the 2nd one) where you can see the drumbeats and these are very similar to the graph I posted shown below of La Palma where I commented there was movement on this island graph yesterday?

[falkirkdan]

There appears to be a yacht sailing right through the centre of eruptions at the moment.   Certainly with all the material in the water is more sensible sailing than drawing this into engine cooling system.
The caostguard/reasearch boat was in the area and about the harbour wall area it then headed off to the west and did not go near the yacht.

[jand]

Falkirkdan

Looks like another boat is going over to them .

No as you say it has just ignored them.

[falkirkdan]

wish we could get the close up camera on them.

[jand]

Update 30/11 – 15:14 UTC
 Reader Daniel wrote :
 I just had a look on the recent modis-subsets sat-image....
 http://lance-modis.eosdis.nasa.gov/imagery/subsets/?subset=Canary_Islands.2011334.terra.250m
 On the webcams, the greenish water is very near to La Restinga and the harbour itself. But does it come from our known vent? The surface ocean currents are coming from NE moving to SW (just googled).
 Wind currents are, of course, independent. Wind comes actual from E..
 Earthquake-report.com comment : The NASA Modis satellite picture shows very well the power of the sea currents. The big blue stains we see to the right of La Restinga have been created the last couple of days (we think). This image shows also the reason why todays stain  can be viewed on the webcam to the left of La Restinga.  The newer stain is visible a little to the south of La Restinga.  Thank you Daniel

[jand]

Copied from Avcan FB Posted 1hr ago.

Translated.

The truth is more than interesting and gives another realistic view of what is happening... Stressing that it brings that vision that from AVCAN we have been stressing for several days, that there is no sleep, quiet Yes, but not dead calm, there are problems that following there and have to be on alert because there are real possibilities that indicate that the situation can change (worst)There are many parameters indicating anomalies, namely pre-eruptivos and eruptive symptoms, we are going to something big happen... both North and South...

People want to live, do his normal life and live without the alerts and calm, no evacuations and bans, but live with volcanic risk under the feet of your home is something else, is what we are experiencing.

Ends the Chronicle of the blog going more far, asks the question, everyone (at least I) do that management is doing and allowing the normal life of people... could this be a recklessness? (Henry).

[jand]

worldvolcano.com

Inge B. says:

 November 30, 2011 at 15:56

The pyroclasts from Mar del Calmas will be researched in the laboratories of 3 international universities which are Université de Clermont-Ferrand in France – which by the way also did research on material of Eyjafjallajökull last year -, Washington State University and McGill Université de Québec in Canada acc. to this newspaper article by La Provincia

Both the European and two US universities received samples for the first analysis carried out by scientists with the stones to appear floating on the sea on 15 October. "This is the third study, because there was another intermediate as well as the first samples extracted from the sea in October," explained yesterday Carmen Lopez, of the National Geographic Institute (IGN). "In addition to the Spanish centres are sent samples to these international laboratories to have a more complete study", in order to compare results and have more data.

American and French universities have not yet issued its results because trials take longer.
http://www.laprovincia.es/especiales/2011/11/30/piroclastos-viajan-eeuu-canada-analisis/419567.html

[lionfish]

If people have the time and inclination to track ship movements in and around El Hierro (or anywhere else for that matter) try this site:-
http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/default.aspx?centerx=30¢ery=25&zoom=2&level1=140#   you will, however, need a bit of knowledge of Geography to zoom in on El Hierro. As mentioned, Ramon Margalef is currently in the area.

[kevin2003]

quote:Originally posted by jand

Well said Fifi thats why you are head of the FIJA detective agency !!!!!!!

[falkirkdan]

Well the yacht that I have been watching is some sort of sun spot or similiar on the camera either that or they have managed to anchor on the shore!!!!

The research ship sent a small rib back into harbour and it has just ruturned with the fish suppers they zoomed the camera in when it got back to the ship.   Must have wanted to check that they got the right order. 2 with sauce only!!!

[jand]

Falkirkdan there is something in the same spot again it cant be a sunspot could it be the ship again?.

[SurfJames]

Evening fellow Volcanists!

Just come in from work an enjoying a beer and catching up on todays events.

Thanks once again to all you superb posters......Those photos fifi are amazing and your posts jand are extremely informative and well researched.

I have a theory about drum beats...... []

The sea water enters the vent and reaches the molten magma. The temperature is so high, that it instantly boils forcing the water away from the molten surface. This creates a detectable sound which is rather like someone hitting a drum. A fraction of a second later, the water vapour collapses and the water rushes back to the molten surface and the the whole process repeats itself - over and over again. The result is a sound like someone hitting a drum skin.

[][8D]

[fifi]

Hi Surfjames. Busy painting today so hardly had a chance to keep up with the volcano. Do you think that the drumbeats were caused by the ship or do you think that they are a natural occurance? Chilling out now with a glass of vino having just washed my brushes.[]

[Surfista]

'The sea water enters the vent and reaches the molten magma. The temperature is so high, that it instantly boils forcing the water away from the molten surface. This creates a detectable sound which is rather like someone hitting a drum. A fraction of a second later, the water vapour collapses and the water rushes back to the molten surface and the the whole process repeats itself - over and over again. The result is a sound like someone hitting a drum skin.'

Interesting theory and rather akin to those shrimp that can emit a bubble/s at such velocity the water around it instantly vaporises - and an incredibly loud sound is heard as the vacuum created is refilled...some say over 200Db.  Sounds like similar science to me.

PS.  Fifi, are you a fellow artist?