SCIENTISTS PREDICT THAT AN UNDERWATER VOLCANO OFF THE COAST OF OREGON MAY SOON ERUPT
Scientists think that the 3,600-foot-tall undersea volcano known as Axial Seamount, which is located about 300 miles off the coast of Oregon, could erupt very soon. The eruption, which would be the volcano's first in a decade, would provide important information for forecasting future marine events of this nature.
Fortunately, Axial Seamount is not dangerous to humans since it is too distant from the coast and too deep in the Pacific Ocean to affect seismic activity on land. Actually, Mike Poland, the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory's chief scientist, is excited about the impending eruption.
“This particular volcano is probably the best-monitored submarine volcano in the world,” Poland told Cowboy State Daily. “It’s fascinating and doesn’t really pose a hazard.”
"It will resemble a Hawaiian lava flow eruption when the Axial Seamount blows," Poland continued, adding that "calm effusions of lava [flow] out of the caldera and across the seafloor." The main reason for this is that Axial Seamount is a shield volcano, which is distinguished from "super volcanoes" like the one in Yellowstone by its modest explosivity. Naturally, shield volcanoes can do a great deal of damage because of how quickly their lava flows, but Axial Seamount, which is located 4,626 feet below the ocean, is not a concern.
“Deep submarine eruptions are inhibited by the tremendous water pressure of the ocean,” Poland explained. “Even explosive eruptions struggle against the ocean.”
Additionally, the surrounding water will instantly cool the magma that is released from the Axial Seamount, forming what are known in volcanology as pillow lavas. These pillow lavas, as their name implies, are bulbous masses covered in a layer of skin that effectively cools them down to their core, so reducing their destructive potential.
What precisely do scientists know about the imminence of the eruption? For the past few months, the seafloor surrounding Axial Seamount has been expanding, and a surge in tremors beneath the volcano offers yet another hint.
“Over time, the volcano inflates due to the buildup of magma beneath the surface,” William Wilcock, a professor at the University of Washington School of Oceanography, told FOX Weather. “Some researchers have hypothesised that the amount of inflation can predict when the volcano will erupt, and if they’re correct, it’s very exciting for us, because it has already inflated to the level that it reached before the last three eruptions.”
Axial Seamount most recently erupted in 2015, and, before that, in 2011 and 1998. Based on current inflation, scientists believe that the volcano will erupt by the end of the year, if not before then.
“It’s frequently active,” Poland said. “Geologists monitoring Axial Seamount have observed that it reaches a certain threshold in terms of inflation, then it erupts.”
Axial Seamount is the most well-monitored volcano in the world, second only to Yellowstone National Park. Axial Seamount's activities and eventual eruption can be monitored to shed light on how other volcanoes behave across the world.
Poland came to the conclusion that "Axial Seamount is not so distinct from the volcanoes in Hawaii and Iceland, except that it lies deep on the bottom."
According to the UW College of the Environment, in addition, the eruption will create intriguing sounds on the seafloor as chilly ocean water collides with lava.
According to Wilcock, "a pocket of seawater that becomes trapped beneath a lava flow heats up and turns into steam." When the steam eventually escapes, it creates a bubble that soon cools and bursts, creating a loud implosion that our hydrophones can detect.
Although they do not yet have a precise date for Axial Seamount's eruption, scientists will keep an eye on the volcano until it does.