SIGNS OF AN IMPENDING

VOLCANO AND HOW IT

AFFECTS OUR SOCIET Y
BY: GROUP 5
MAGYAYA, DANIEL CARL ANDREI D.
ROSALES, JOHN RONIEL B.
ANDAYA, GWYNETH NICOLE C.
 FUN FACT!:

Before the eruption in 1991 Pinatubo was 1745 m high (ca. 250 m more
than now), and was only 200 m higher than the nearby peaks, which are
remnants of older volcanic edifices of Mt Pinatubo and hid it from views
from distance. Pinatubo mostly noted for a failed geothermal development
project.
IMPENDING VOLCANIC ERUPTION

• ACCORDING TO THE PHILIPPINE INSTITUTE OF

VOLCANOLOGY AND SEISMOLOGY(PHIVOLCS), THE
GOVERNMENT AGENCY TASKED WITH MONITORING
EARTHQUAKES AND VOLCANOES IN THE COUNTRY,
THE FOLLOWING ARE COMMONLY OBSERVED
SIGNS THAT A VOLCANO IS ABOUT TO ERUPT. THIS
MAY VARY FROM ONE VOLCANO TO ANOTHER.
• IT SHOW INCREASE IN THE FREQUENCY OF VOLCANIC
QUAKES WITH RUMBLING SOUNDS; OCCURRENCE OF
VOLCANIC TREMORS.
• IT SHOWS INCREASE IN STEAMING ACTIVITY; CHANGE
IN COLOR OF STEAM EMISSION FROM WHITE TO GRAY
DUE TO ENTRAINED ASH.
• IT’S CRATER GLOW DUE TO PRESENCE OF MAGMA AT OR
NEAR THE CRATER.
• GROUND SWELLS (ALSO CALLED INFLATION), GROUND
TILT AND GROUND FISSURING DUE TO MAGMA
INTRUSION;
• LOCALIZED LANDSLIDES, ROCKFALLS AND LANDSLIDES
FROM THE SUMMIT ARE WHICH ARE NOT ATTRIBUTABLE
TO HEAVY RAINS;
• NOTICEABLE INCREASE IN THE EXTENT OF DRYING UP OF
VEGETATION AROUND THE VOLCANO’S UPPER SLOPES;
• INCREASE IN THE TEMPERATURE OF HOT SPRINGS, WELLS
(E.G. BULUSAN AND CANLAON) AND CRATER LAKE (E.G.
TAAL) NEAR VOLCANO;
• NOTICEABLE VARIATION IN THE CHEMICAL CONTENT OF
THE SPRINGS, CRATER LAKE WITHIN THE VICINITY OF THE
VOLCANO;
• DRYING UP OF SPRING/WELLS AROUND THE VOLCANO; AND
• DEVELOPMENT OF NEW THERMAL AREAS AND/OR
REACTIVATION OF OLD ONES; (APPEARANCE OF
SOLFATARAS)
 FUN FACT!:

When a volcanic eruption occurs, an electrical discharge can give rise to

volcanic lightning, which happens when individual ash particles rub together and
build up enough static electricity.
Large eruptions can see thousands of volcanic lightning strikes, which makes
this one of the many fascinating facts about volcanoes!
 EFFECTS OF VOLCANIC ERUPTION IN
OUR SOCIETY

VOLCANIC ERUPTION IS OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH NEGATIVE EFFECTS

.IT CAN CAUSE LOSS OF LIVES AND PROPERTIES. AS THE LAVA FLOWS OR
PYROCLASTIC MATERIALS ARE EJECTED IN THE AIR, THEY CAN DESTROY
ANYTHING IN THEIR WAY. ACTUALLY, IT HAS A GOOD AND A BAD SIDE.
FOR EXAMPLE, THE ERUPTION OF PINATUBO IN 1991, ONE OF THE
LONGEST VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS, HAS CAUSED THE DECREASE IN THE
EARTH’S SURFACE TEMPERATURE FOR ALMOST TWO YEARS. THE
STRONG WINDS DURING ITS ERUPTION SPREAD THE AEROSOL PARTICLES
FROM THE PLUME AROUND THE GLOBE. THE RESULT WAS A
MEASURABLE COOLING OF THE EARTH’S SURFACE FOR A PERIOD OF
ALMOST TWO YEARS.
 VOLCANOES ALSO AFFECT PEOPLE POSITIVELY. FOR EXAMPLE, THE
ERUPTION OF PINATUBO VOLCANO HAS CREATED SPECTACULAR
SCENERIES IN THE WAKE. LIKEWISE, THE ERUPTION OF MUSUAN
VOLCANO IN BUKIDNON HAS PRODUCED VERY RICH SOILS FOR FARMING
YEARS AFTER ITS ERUPTION IN 1867. PEOPLE ALSO BECAME CREATIVE BY
MAKING EARTHENWARE OUT OF THE ASHFALL FROM THE PINATUBO
VOLCANO ERUPTION. DESPITE THE ADVANTAGES THAT PEOPLE GET FROM
VOLCANIC ERUPTION, THE MAJOR CONCERN NOW IS HOW TO REDUCE
THE NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF DISASTER TO REDUCE LOSS AND SAVE LIVES.
 FUN FACT!:

• The word volcano originally comes from the name Vulcan, who is the Roman god of fire
• Lava is the name for magma escaping the Earth’s surface
• The study of volcanoes is called volcanology
• Volcanoes are openings in the Earth’s surface
• There are volcanoes on other planets as well, such as Olympus Mons on Mars, which is one of
the largest volcanoes in our solar system
POSITIVE EFFECTS OF VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS

• SOIL FERTILITY: VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS HELP BRING PUT

VARIOUS MINERALS AND CHEMICALS TO THE SURFACE; THIS
PROCESS HELPS TO INCREASE THE FERTILITY OF THE SOIL
WHICH IS WHY VOLCANIC SOIL IS MUCH VALUED. APART
FROM ENHANCING SOIL FERTILITY, THE RESULTANT
ERUPTION ALSO HELPS TO BRING OUT VARIOUS PRECIOUS
MINERALS BURIED DEEP IN THE EARTH SUCH AS DIAMONDS,
OPAL, GARNETS, EMERALDS AND MUCH MORE.
• GEOTHERMAL POWER: VOLCANOES CAN PROVIDE YOU WITH A READY SOURCE
OF POWER SINCE THE SAME CAN BE TAPPED BY GEOTHERMAL POWER
STATIONS AND HELP TO POWER UP THE VARIOUS CITIES LOCATED CLOSE BY;
FOR EXAMPLE, HAWAII WHICH IS EXPERIENCING VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS AT THE
MOMENT, HAS SEVERAL GEOTHERMAL POWER STATIONS WHICH HELP TO
GENERATE MUCH-NEEDED POWER FOR ALL THE LOCAL RESIDENCES.
• MOISTURE: VOLCANOES HAVE BEEN SPEWING MOISTURE-LADEN GASES
DIRECTLY INTO THE ATMOSPHERE FOR ALMOST 4 BILLION YEARS AND MORE.
MOREOVER, OUR ATMOSPHERE IS A BYPRODUCT OF ALL THE VARIOUS
ERUPTIONS THAT HAD TAKEN PLACE SINCE THE EARTH FORMED OUT OF THE
PRIMORDIAL DUST IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM. VOLCANOES FORM A VITAL
COMPONENT TO THE WATER CYCLE ON OUR PLANET BY ADDING SEVERAL
TONNES OF MOISTURE-LADEN GASES DIRECTLY INTO OUR ATMOSPHERE.
• BUILDING MATERIALS: VOLCANIC ASH IS VALUED AS A PREMIUM BUILDING
MATERIAL AND IT HAS CERTAINLY BEEN VALUED FOR ITS WATERPROOFING
PROPERTIES SINCE ANCIENT TIMES. ANCIENT ROMANS MIXED LIME, CONCRETE
AND VOLCANIC ASH PROPORTIONALLY TO CREATE WATERPROOF CONCRETE. IT
IS STILL VALUED IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY, EVEN TODAY.
NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS

• WIDESPREAD DAMAGE: ALL VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS RESULT IN

WIDESPREAD DAMAGE TO THE POINT THAT WHOLE CITIES ARE
DESTROYED ALONG WITH THE ENTIRE LOCAL INFRASTRUCTURE.
THIS CAN IMPACT THE LOCAL POPULATION ON SEVERAL LEVEL
SAND IT CAN TAKE A WHILE BEFORE THE CITY CAN BE
RECONSTRUCTED.
• ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE: EVEN THOUGH A VOLCANIC ERUPTION
LEADS TO INCREASED FERTILITY IN THE SOIL, THE PROCESS
TAKES TIME. IN THE MEANWHILE, THE FALL OUT ON THE LOCAL
ENVIRONMENT IS IMMEDIATE WITH ASH, TOXIC GASES ALL OF
WHICH IMPACT THE LOCAL FLORA AND FAUNA.
• FATALITIES: ALTHOUGH THERE IS NO WAY TO ACCURATELY PREDICT WHEN A VOLCANO
WILL ERUPT, SCIENTISTS CAN STILL MAKE A ROUGH ESTIMATE DEPENDING ON THEIR
OBSERVATIONS, VISCOSITY AND DENSITY OF MAGMA ETC. BUT THE REALITY IS THAT IT
IS NOT ALWAYS POSSIBLE TO ACCURATELY PREDICT ALL VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS AND
SOME EVEN TAKE PLACE WITH LITTLE OR NO ADVANCE WARNING. FOR EXAMPLE, THE
RECENT HAWAIIAN VOLCANIC ERUPTION GAVE NO WARNING INDICATION AND THE END
RESULT IS WIDESPREAD DAMAGE AND FATALITIES. IT SHOULD ALSO BE POINTED OUT
THAT IT IS NOT FEASIBLE TO EITHER ACCURATELY PREDICT OR EVEN PREVENT A
VOLCANO FROM ERUPTING SINCE WE LACK THE REQUISITE TECHNOLOGY. GIVEN THIS,
MOST OF THE RESIDENTS STAYING CLOSE TO A VOLCANO MAY HAVE TO CONSIDER
RELOCATING SOME DISTANCE AWAY, JUST TO BE SAFE.
• LAVA FLOWS: WHEN A VOLCANO ERUPTS, THE MAGMA SPILLOVERS AS LAVA WHICH
THEN SEEKS THE LOWEST POINT AND HEADS TOWARDS THE SAME. IT SHOULD BE
POINTED OUT THAT NOT ALL THE LAVA FLOWS BEHAVE IN THE SAME MANNER.
DEPENDING ON THE PRESSURE IN THE MAGMA CHAMBER, THE HEAT AND THE
TEMPERATURE, DENSITY AND VISCOSITY OF THE MAGMA – WHICH IS WHY SOME OF THE
LAVA MOVES SLUGGISHLY WHILE OTHERS MOVE AT A RAPID CLICK. THE CURRENT LAVA
FLOW IN KILAUEA ON HAWAII IS MOVING AT A SPEED OF 7.7 METERS PER SECOND,
WHICH IS FASTER THAN THE SPEED AT WHICH AN AVERAGE HUMAN CAN MOVE AND
THAT’S WHY VOLCANOES CAN OFTEN CAUSE WIDESPREAD DESTRUCTION, AND
FATALITIES GIVEN THE SPEED OF THE MAGMA FLOW.
• LUNG DISEASE: INHALING THE DUST CALLED
SILICA DUST THAT COMES FROM A VOLCANO
AS IT ERUPTS CAN CAUSE A PERSON TO HAVE
A LUNG DISEASE THAT IS
PNEUMONOULTRAMICROSCOPICSILICOVOLCA
NOCONIOSIS. AND IT HAS AN PRETTY LONG
NAME, ISN’T IT?
 LET’S TEST YOUR
LEARNING ABILITY!
1.