Volcanos have always been feared because of the fiery lava and smoky ash that can cause death and destruction to the things that lay in its path. However, they are not the only eruptions that people should fear. In this article, you will encounter one of the deadliest of volcanic eruptions in history, as well as an eruption that took place under water.
The Eruption of Tambora , 1815
In south Indonesia, the Sumbawa Island was home to Mount Tambora, which erupted from April 6 to 11 in 1815. Little did residents know that the worst of the volcano’s rage was saved for last. On April 10 and 11, the power was rated as a seven on the Volcanic Explosivity Index. This meant that the region had experienced the most powerful eruption in recorded history. To get an idea of how strong the eruption was, the Tambora eruption was 52,000 times more powerful than the Hiroshima bomb.
No vegetation on Sumbawa was left, as trees and other plant life was either incinerated or uprooted. The aftermath was mixed with ash and washed out into the sea. The volcanic eruption killed 92,000 people , most of which died from starvation. The finer ash was left behind on the land and stayed in the atmosphere for three years. It covered the entire planet and spread across North America and Europe. The ash caused changes in the weather and global temperatures started to decrease on average. The drops in the climate were great.
The volcanic eruption caused 1816 to be the coldest year in the 1810s. It made the decade the coldest one of the century as well. Other parts of the world felt the effects , in Quebec City, 12 inches of snow fell from June 6 to 10, 1816 and the entire Northern Hemisphere suffered severe damage with their crops.
The Eruption at Lake Nyos , 1986
Have you ever heard of a limnic eruption? Not many people are aware of this odd natural disaster that took place in Lake Nyos in a rather isolated region in the Cameroonian jungle. In order for this kind of eruption to occur, certain criteria have to be met. Because of this, it’s rare that it ever happens. However, on August 21, 1986, a magma chamber leaked out carbon dioxide into the water under the lake bed. The makeup of the water changes when this occurs, and the water becomes a carbonic acid. The carbon dioxide will not move from the bottom of the lake unless another force pushes it up. This is because carbon dioxide is 1 ½ times denser than air.
In 1986, the carbon dioxide at the bottom of the lake suddenly erupted all at once. 1.6 million tons of carbon dioxide led to the release of a cloud of carbon dioxide from the water. The cloud that formed was heavier than the air and stayed close to the ground until it shot out of the lake at 60 mph. Moving up to 30 mph, the cloud took away all of the oxygen in several small villages. In the process, between 1,700 and 1,800 people were suffocated. Livestock was also killed along the way.
The force of the gas expulsion also affected the lake water and created a tsunami that reached 80 feet into the air. The trees were stripped of its foliage and moved from one side of the shore. Shrubs and soil disappeared.