Nature & Environment
Supervolcano Campi Flegrei In Naples Might Erupt; 500,000 People At Risk
Elaine Hannah
First Posted: Dec 21, 2016 03:50 AM EST
The supervolcano in Naples, Italy, referred to as Campi Flegrei is nearing critical pressure point and might erupt soon. About 500,000 people, who occupied the surrounding area of the volcano may be at risk.
The scientists discovered for the first time a threshold beyond, in which a magma beneath the surface could cause the release of fluids and gasses at an increasing rate. Giovanni Chiodini, a researcher from Italy's National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology in Bologna, said that this would cause the injection of high-temperature steam into surrounding rocks. He further said that hydrothermal rocks, if heated, can ultimately lose their mechanical resistance, causing an acceleration toward critical conditions.
Giovanni Chiodini added that it was unpredictable when the volcano will erupt. On the other hand, if it would, this would be very dangerous because there are about 500,000 people living inside and near the caldera, which is the bowl-like depression created after a volcano blows its top, according to The Guardian.
Scientists said that Campi Flegrei is undergoing "uplift" since 2005. Italian authorities have been on alert for scientific monitoring since 2012. This is because the pace of ground formation and low-level seismic activity has heightened. The caldera of this supervolcano was formed 39,000 years ago in a blast.
The volcano spewed hundreds of cubic kilometers of rock, lava and debris into the air. It was the biggest eruption in Europe in the past 200,000 years. It last erupted in 1538 in a much smaller scale.
Campi Flegrei, also known as the Phlegraean Fields, is a massive volcanic area in the west of Naples in Italy. Campi Flegrei in Greek means "to burn." The caldera has 24 craters and volcanic edifices. There are also effusive gaseous manifestations in the Solfatara crater, which is the mythological home of the Roman god of fire known as Vulcan.
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First Posted: Dec 21, 2016 03:50 AM EST
The supervolcano in Naples, Italy, referred to as Campi Flegrei is nearing critical pressure point and might erupt soon. About 500,000 people, who occupied the surrounding area of the volcano may be at risk.
The scientists discovered for the first time a threshold beyond, in which a magma beneath the surface could cause the release of fluids and gasses at an increasing rate. Giovanni Chiodini, a researcher from Italy's National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology in Bologna, said that this would cause the injection of high-temperature steam into surrounding rocks. He further said that hydrothermal rocks, if heated, can ultimately lose their mechanical resistance, causing an acceleration toward critical conditions.
Giovanni Chiodini added that it was unpredictable when the volcano will erupt. On the other hand, if it would, this would be very dangerous because there are about 500,000 people living inside and near the caldera, which is the bowl-like depression created after a volcano blows its top, according to The Guardian.
Scientists said that Campi Flegrei is undergoing "uplift" since 2005. Italian authorities have been on alert for scientific monitoring since 2012. This is because the pace of ground formation and low-level seismic activity has heightened. The caldera of this supervolcano was formed 39,000 years ago in a blast.
The volcano spewed hundreds of cubic kilometers of rock, lava and debris into the air. It was the biggest eruption in Europe in the past 200,000 years. It last erupted in 1538 in a much smaller scale.
Campi Flegrei, also known as the Phlegraean Fields, is a massive volcanic area in the west of Naples in Italy. Campi Flegrei in Greek means "to burn." The caldera has 24 craters and volcanic edifices. There are also effusive gaseous manifestations in the Solfatara crater, which is the mythological home of the Roman god of fire known as Vulcan.
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone