The volcanic eruption on La Palma is a great danger.
The extent of the force of nature is made clear by satellite images from NASA.
Frankfurt / La Palma - The volcano Cumbre Vieja on the Canary Island of La Palma does not come to rest.
After an eruption around three weeks ago *, the volcano continues to rage: at the beginning of the week, for example, there were earthquakes in the region.
Several lava flows make their way across the island.
Thousands of people's lives are in danger.
Many villages have already been evacuated.
The local authorities also examine the air quality on La Palma, as the Cumbre Vieja "spits out" large clouds of smoke.
Nasa * recordings now show the extent of the volcanic eruption and the activity of the Cumbre Vieja on La Palma.
For example, a rare phenomenon can be seen in the satellite images from the Earth Observatory.
Several circular clouds of smoke can be seen at a height of several kilometers.
Volcanic eruption on La Palma: NASA publishes satellite images
Experts at the Izaña Atmospheric Research Center on the Canary Island of Tenerife cite an inversion layer in the earth's atmosphere as the reason for this.
At a height of several kilometers, such weather conditions lead to higher temperatures than on the earth's surface.
In other words: ash and gas were blocked by a warm, dry layer of air around five kilometers above the ground.
As a result, clouds of smoke collected in special shapes.
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A satellite image from the Earth Observatory from October 4, 2021 of the island of La Palma and the volcanic eruption.
© NASA
According to NASA, the ring-shaped plumes of smoke are darkly colored because the volcano on La Palma emits the ash very unevenly.
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A satellite image from the Earth Observatory from October 1st, 2021 of the island of La Palma and the volcanic eruption.
© NASA
In addition to the jerky clouds of smoke, lava gushes out of the volcano in masses.
According to the Institute of Volcanology of the Canary Islands, the magma has temperatures of up to 1240 degrees Celsius.
In the meantime, a lava field of around 30 hectares has emerged, which enlarges the island of La Palma.
In addition, 350 hectares of inhabited area were covered by the volcanic mass, which made the evacuations mentioned above necessary.
(Tobias Utz)
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