This Volcano Has Slept Since the Stone Age – Now It’s Awake - video Dailymotion

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Imagine a volcano that’s been snoozing since the Stone Age—thousands of years ago—and now it’s waking up! Scientists have recently noticed signs like rumbling earthquakes, steam, or small eruptions from this once-dormant giant. It’s a big deal because dormant volcanoes can still erupt with a bang, and people living nearby could be in danger. Experts are keeping a close eye, using cool tools like satellites and sensors, to predict what might happen next. While it’s scary, it’s also a reminder of how alive and powerful our planet is. Nature doesn’t follow a strict schedule, so it’s always full of surprises!

Transcript

00:00These ominous rumbling sounds, the ground shaking under your feet, wait a minute, that's my tummy!

00:07Or it might be Washington State's Mount Adams waking up!

00:11It's the largest volcano in the state by both area and volume,

00:15and it's recently started to show signs of life after staying silent for thousands of years.

00:21Scientists have noticed an alarming uptick in seismic activity around the mountain.

00:25And since the last eruption here happened between 3,800 and 7,600 years ago,

00:31humanity was still in the Stone Age at that time.

00:34This sudden chattiness has scientists, let's say, curious.

00:38The U.S. Geological Survey has hurriedly installed temporary seismic stations around Mount Adams

00:43to keep an eye on the situation.

00:46At the same time, they reassure the public there's no need to panic.

00:50Mount Adams doesn't reach the height of the better-known Mount Rainier.

00:54And still, it covers a massive area, making it Washington's largest active volcano.

01:00Interestingly, records show that before September of this year,

01:04Mount Adams had experienced an average of just one small earthquake every 2-3 years since 1982.

01:11And then, the Cascades Volcano Observatory and the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network

01:16detected a staggering 6 earthquakes in just one month, September.

01:20However, these quakes were all rather tiny, with magnitudes ranging between 0.9 and 2 on the Richter scale.

01:28It means they were so weak you wouldn't feel them at the surface.

01:31Plus, satellite imagery confirmed there was no ground deformation in the area.

01:37Now, at the moment, the USGS keeps Mount Adams' alert level at green or normal.

01:42So, we shouldn't worry about the ground opening and swallowing towns and cities.

01:47But the most recent seismic blips have encouraged the agency to install additional equipment

01:52for more precise monitoring.

01:54Such an expanded network will help scientists notice even the smallest earthquakes,

01:59which will help them understand what's happening under Mount Adams.

02:03This extra equipment might also shed light on whether this recent activity

02:07is a signal of future eruptions or just a random anomaly.

02:12If Mount Adams eventually erupted, it would likely produce slow-moving lava flows

02:17rather than explosive eruptions like Mount St. Helens.

02:21After all, past eruptions have only led to lava flows that travel just a few miles from the volcano.

02:27So, that's not what we'd need to worry about.

02:30A much more dangerous thing would be lahars.

02:32These are mud flows that can happen when volcanic ash, rock, and melted ice mix during eruptions.

02:38Lahars have occurred near Mount Adams without even eruptions.

02:42Rock, weakened by hydrothermal processes at the volcano's summit,

02:46suddenly broke loose, creating fast-moving, destructive mud flows.

02:51Exactly for this reason, the USGS categorizes Mount Adams as a high-threat volcano.

02:57While it doesn't erupt frequently, it still poses serious risks to nearby settlements.

03:04Another volcano we should carefully watch is Katla in Iceland.

03:08It's one of the country's most powerful and dangerous volcanoes.

03:12It last erupted over a century ago, in 1918.

03:15But if it erupts again, it could be 10 times as powerful as another Icelandic volcano,

03:22whose name I can't pronounce.

03:23See?

03:24That one erupted in 2010, completely disrupting air travel all over Europe.

03:30An eruption of Katla could release large amounts of sulfur dioxide,

03:34which could form sulfate aerosols in the atmosphere.

03:37Such aerosols reflect sunlight, which could even cause temporary global cooling.

03:42This phenomenon often followed catastrophic volcanic eruptions in the past.

03:47Although eruptions are common in Iceland,

03:49Katla's ash cloud would likely shoot higher into the sky

03:53and cover larger areas of Europe than that other one did.

03:57It would ground flights and negatively affect economies.

04:01If Katla erupted, it would also harm agriculture, water supplies, and air quality.

04:07In 2014, scientists noted that a large eruption could even cause a tsunami

04:11that might travel along Iceland's south coast and out to sea.

04:15But the potential impact of such a tsunami is still unclear.

04:20Katla tends to erupt on a regular schedule every 40 to 80 years,

04:24which means that another eruption is statistically very likely soon.

04:29That's why Katla remains under close scientific observation.

04:32The Canary Islands' Cumbra Vieja erupted recently in 2021,

04:40reminding people of its destructive potential.

04:43The lava flow from this eruption was devastating.

04:46It covered whole neighborhoods and flowed into the ocean,

04:49destroying more than 3,000 homes.

04:52Thousands of people had to be evacuated.

04:54But the craziest thing?

04:56Even though the damage was significant,

04:58scientists believe it could have been far worse.

05:00A massive eruption of Cumbra Vieja could have caused the volcano's entire western flank

05:06to collapse into the Atlantic Ocean, triggering a mega-tsunami.

05:11This hypothetical tsunami could have potentially created waves

05:14hundreds or even thousands of feet high.

05:17They could have flooded coastlines around the Atlantic Basin,

05:20including parts of the U.S. and Europe.

05:23Luckily, recent studies claim that a collapse of that scale is unlikely.

05:27But even though the chance of a mega-tsunami is low,

05:31scientists still think it's wise to prepare for possible eruptions

05:35because there's a chance of extensive damage.

05:38The lava flows that occur at this volcano tend to be extensive and dangerous

05:42to both human life and the infrastructure on the island.

05:46If you decide to travel to Ecuador, you should be wary of Cotopaxi,

05:53one of the most active volcanoes in this country.

05:56It's been rumbling with minor eruptions since 2022.

06:00While these eruptions have been relatively small,

06:03Cotopaxi's has a great potential for a major eruption.

06:06And it has scientists on high alert.

06:08If Cotopaxi erupted on a large scale,

06:12it could produce a massive ash cloud over 12 miles high,

06:16threatening the lives of around 200,000 people in the neighboring area.

06:21A serious danger is Cotopaxi's snow-capped summit.

06:24It would melt super rapidly in a major eruption.

06:28It could lead to destructive floods and landslides

06:30that would flow down the mountain and potentially reach populated areas.

06:34This combination of volcanic activity and glacial floods

06:38makes Cotopaxi a high-risk volcano.

06:42A powerful eruption could occur soon,

06:44or it could be years or even decades away.

06:47But monitoring efforts are in place to catch any warning signs.

06:53The next volcano we should watch out for is already infamous,

06:57Mount Vesuvius.

06:59Its catastrophic eruption in 79 CE

07:02destroyed the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

07:06Its last eruption occurred in 1944,

07:09but Vesuvius remains highly active

07:11and poses a great risk to nearby Naples,

07:15one of Italy's largest cities.

07:16A large eruption would threaten over 3 million people.

07:20Many of them live in the vicinity

07:22or even directly on the slopes of the volcano.

07:25If Vesuvius erupted,

07:27it would be an explosive event,

07:28with ash, rocks, and volcanic gas ejected at extremely high speeds.

07:34And even though such a destructive event

07:36isn't expected for a few hundred years,

07:39Vesuvius remains one of the world's most closely watched volcanoes.

07:43After all, it has a real potential to cause catastrophic damage

07:47in a densely populated area.

07:49Then, we have Popocatépetl,

07:54often called El Popo.

07:56It's one of North America's tallest active volcanoes,

07:59which lies about 40 miles from Mexico City.

08:02Exactly this proximity to a metropolitan area

08:05with a population of 22 million people

08:08makes Popocatépetl especially hazardous.

08:11A large eruption could send a massive ash cloud over Mexico City,

08:15causing widespread disruptions.

08:17Ash could clog the city's drainage systems,

08:20contaminate water supplies,

08:21and even cause power outages

08:23by short-circuiting electrical systems.

08:26Plus, lahars could rush down the volcano,

08:29reaching nearby towns.

08:31Popocatépetl has been showing near-constant seismic activity

08:34since the early 2000s,

08:37and smaller eruptions are pretty common here.

08:40In early 2024,

08:41there were 13 recorded minor eruptions,

08:44which alarmed nearby towns.

08:45At the same time,

08:47volcanologists consider such eruptions

08:49normal for Popocatépetl.

08:53While talking about super-dangerous volcanoes,

08:56we can't skip Yellowstone National Park.

08:59It houses one of the world's largest super-volcanoes.

09:03Its last massive eruption

09:04occurred about 640,000 years ago.

09:07But if this monster were to erupt today,

09:10the impact would be much more devastating

09:12for the entire planet.

09:14States closest to Yellowstone,

09:16including Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming,

09:19would be most affected,

09:20likely experiencing disastrous pyroclastic flows.

09:24These flows,

09:25which are made of a dangerous mix of lava, ash, and gases,

09:28can obliterate everything in their path.

09:31Large parts of the country

09:33would also be blanketed in volcanic ash,

09:36over 3 feet in some areas.

09:37On a global scale,

09:39an eruption at Yellowstone

09:41would send tons of ash and gases

09:43into the stratosphere,

09:45potentially blocking sunlight

09:46and causing global temperatures

09:48to drop for a few years.

09:50This would disrupt agriculture,

09:52collapse transportation systems,

09:54and create food shortages on a massive scale.

09:57Still,

09:58even though there's a popular myth

09:59that Yellowstone is overdue for an eruption,

10:03geologists clarify that this isn't true.

10:05Volcanoes don't follow precise timetables,

10:08and the activity at Yellowstone

10:10doesn't indicate an imminent eruption.

10:13So, yeah, that's good news.

This Volcano Has Slept Since the Stone Age – Now It’s Awake

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