Volcanic Ash, Climatic Hazards and Impacts - Case Study Example

Name Course Date Introduction A volcanic eruption occurs when ash, molten rock and gases are poured out of a volcanic fissure or a vent. Volcanoes can either be active, dormant or extinct. Iceland is full of active volcanoes, and the largest eruption occurred in 2010 send ash plume to great heights and over Atlantic Ocean. Part 1: Map Predictions Based on the information from Icelandic Meteorological Office, the explosive activity from the Eyjafjallajökull volcano has increased with ash ejected to a height of over 20,000 feet. Winds are anticipated to continue blowing for at least the following two days, with most of the ash cloud likely to stay over the Atlantic Ocean and close to Western part of Europe. The maps produced provide information such as the surface pressure for the southern parts of Iceland, North Atlantic and Europe, which can be used to predict the effects of volcanic activity in Iceland and the prevailing weather condition. The information can be used in readiness of the impacts of the volcanic activity. The map was produced in response to volcanic eruption and covers an area, which may be affected by the dust plume over the next 48 hours period. The maps are shown below, covering the time periods T+0, T+12, T+24 and T+48. A map for T + 0 (present time) - Surface pressure forecast for the North Atlantic The graph of surface pressure forecast for the North Atlantic on 24 September 2014 shows the positions of low and high-pressure centres and fronts. The analysis was produced at 000 UTC by met office. The isobars have intervals of 4hPa. The low pressure moves in southeastern direction. T + 12 (the prediction for 12 hours ahead) - surface pressure forecast for the North Atlantic. The map predicts that low pressure of 980 hPa is moving towards the southeast in the next 12 hours. It shows that there is more turbulence moving towards southeast. T + 24 - surface pressure forecast for the North Atlantic The map above shows the surface pressure for north Atlantic as predicted in 24hrs. Northeast of the map has a low pressure of 981 hPa compared to the south with 1029 hPa. T + 48 - surface pressure forecast for the North Atlantic The map above shows the surface pressure for north Atlantic as predicted in 48hrs. The history of some places is shown by circles that are joined using dashed line. The history of low pressure can also be shown if the condition stays for more time, specifically 6hrs. In this map low pressure of 965hPa is moving towards southeast. Part 2 – Report to NATS or National Grid Introduction Iceland has active volcanoes because of its location. It lies on a tectonic plate boundary with a fissure, which runs towards the north. More than twenty volcanic active sites have been identified, of which 13 of them has erupted. One of the largest eruption occurred in 2010, in Eyjafjallajökull (Magnússon et al., 2012). The types of eruption, the threats and the aftermath initiatives in Eyjafjallajökull are discussed below. The type of eruption in Eyjafjallajökull The eruption in Eyjafjallajökull volcano began with Hawaiian eruption type with slow lava movement and little or no volcano ash. The second phase of the eruption was mainly Strombolian eruption type with little to heavy ash fall. In the early stage of this eruption, when water entered into the crater, the eruption was very explosive specifically below the glacier, the ash fall was heavy. The volcanic ash plume rose to the height of over 20,000 feet. The ash was very fine and rich in fluorine, with silica composition (Carracedo & Troll, 2013). Initiatives that were put in place after the eruption After the explosion, the government of Icelandic initiated a volcanic risk assessment. This assessment would take a long time and covers generation of volcanic active sites in the Iceland, and analysis of the risk of flood as a result of eruption. Another initiative was to map out the movement of magma related to Eyjafjallajökull eruption, through the study of geochemical and geophysical data for example through the use of radar (Goudie, 2010). The threats posed by the Icelandic ash cloud for the organization The volcano erupted and sent ash plume swirling over Atlantic Ocean, which soon reached Mediterranean Sea and Spain. This occurrence led to closure of the airspace in west areas of Europe for less than a week. An estimate of 1,000,000 passengers and 300 airports were affected (Bjornsson et al., 2010). It was recorded as the largest volcanic eruption that has ever affected civil aviation since world war two. The eruption was located at a distance of 120 km east of Reykjavik. The lives of many people in the Iceland were at risk due to the effects of the eruption especially in the south coastal region, and west coast of Europe because of the ash that were carried towards Europe. The people living the areas down the wind had to put on goggles. People and animals suffered and 500 families were resettled. The transportation around the volcano stopped. The water around the area was polluted by ash and it contained fluoride (Bjornsson et al., 2010). The explosion was violent and was classified as both explosive eruption and fissure. The eruption produced ash plume which reached the height of 11,000 m in air, which reaches the stratosphere. Because the volcano is positioned beneath an ice cap glacier, the eruption became very explosive. Samples of the ash near the volcano showed 58% concentration of silica which very abrasive to machines. The eruption affected the people in other countries as the ashes were distributed over western and northern Europe, and the fights were stopped (Magnússon et al., 2012). The volcanic ash was very fine but abrasive and charged. The electric charged ash can short – circuit electronic and electrical devices. The people are also affected especially the crew and passengers, and for this reason, the aviation were stopped (Petersen et al., 2012). The possible impact of ash on the aircraft engines Volcanic ash affects the jet engines in two major ways. First, the ash is full of silica, and it has abrasive effect especially when it strikes the aircraft at a high speed of 800 km/hr. In addition, the melting point for the volcanic ash lies below 10000C, which is the operating temperature of jet engines (Petersen et al., 2012). The impacts of ash on jet engines depend on some conditions such as the volcanic ash concentration in the clouds, the amount of time the aircraft stays in the clouds, and the action undertaken by the pilot. The main effects of ash on jet engines involve the abrasive effect of the surface facing forward, like the wings’ leading edges and windshield and in openings in the surface, especially in the engines. The ash in the engines causes abrasive damage to the compressor fan. More specifically, melting and the accumulation of ash solids on the turbine vanes, may lead to compressor and engine thrust. The engine operates at a temperature around 11000C, which is can melt the ash particles. The silica melts fuses on the blades and other engine parts (Petersen et al., 2012). Is volcanic ash enters into the hot engine, the ash would melt and cool to produce solid, which clog the vents, and destabilizes the high-pressure blades. Thus, the pressure can increase to produce reverse flow, hence engine surging. If the past events accumulate, the engine will shut down. The fine particles can also be ingested into the bearings and gearbox, and produce long term damaging effects (McGuire et al., 2012). The overall effects on the aircraft flying in ash clouds can lead to jet engine performance degradation. It also causes failure of navigating and operation instruments and visibility loss. The worst effects are those that cause problems in flight. These normally cause serious safety issues, which require risk management plans, which should avoided in all possible ways, causing the turbine to stop. The procedure for controlling the engine turbine system to detect the problem is to raise the power, which increases the problem (Bjornsson et al., 2010). The ash not only causes the clogging of the engine, but it also cause damages to the aircraft and reduces viscidity. The nature of the materials produced during the eruption like glassy, blocky or wet will affect the nature of flight destruction because of the height that the ash reach and the density of the ash (Smellie et al., 2002). Effects on flights European airports should be closed and transatlantic flights diverted for the next few days. All the flights in and around the Iceland have to be closed due their close proximity to the eruption. Since volcanic ash plumes can be carried by wind towards the UK, all the flights in UK will be affected. Airports like Heathrow, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Aberdeen will be closed which will affect flights across the country. Birmingham International Airport will also be affected, as aircraft would be diverted (Webley et al., 2012). The possible impact of ash on electricity generation facilities, and on the electricity distribution network, and their associated supply chains Volcanic ash fall can produce a widespread loss of electricity in many parts, towns, rural areas, and businesses. Power generating plant may shut down during heavy volcanic ash fall and may not open until the ash has been removed from power generating equipments like insulating systems. In addition, the prevailing weather conditions during the ash fall will have an impact on the extent to which the ash will stick on the electrical equipments. The electricity will be lost when the ash is wet, and the power outages can be prevented by removing the wet ash immediately (Magnússon et al., 2012). There are other problems caused by volcanic ash won electrical distribution. These problems include line breakages, controlled outages during cleaning of ash and flashover. If volcanic ash is dry, they do not conduct electricity enough to lead to flashover. However, if the insulation is covered completely by ash, the combination of moisture that may come from the atmosphere in form of rain or from the eruption plume, and soluble ash can lead to flashovers. Fine ash has more potential to conduct. Dry ash rest only on horizontal surface and on gentle sloping surfaces and cause no immediate harm, but wet ash can stick to any surface that is exposed (Webley et al., 2012). Power supply interruption due to ash fall will have a significant impact on the economy and normal activities around the volcano. Many businesses would close either due power cutoff or due to evacuation. The electrical conductivity of volcanic may have effects on the radio waves and communications equipments such as telephone lines, GPS, and radio equipment. Thus, the equipments may not receive or send the communication signals due to the effects of volcanic ash. The ash may also cause physical destruction to structures like towers, buildings and towers, which are used to support communication equipments (Webley et al., 2012). The active volcanic eruption points and lines along the historical fissures in the Iceland, as shown in the map are high-risk areas. This includes the Eyjafjallajökull, Katla and other places along the tectonic edge. Medium risk areas include parts Iceland, parts of Atlantic ocean UK, North Atlantic, and European air space. The wind moving in the southeast direction will carry the volcanic ash along. The volcanic eruption is likely to cause disruptions in air travelling across the northern and western Europe and in other countries lying on the south of the Iceland (Bjornsson et al., 2010). In addition, the volcanic materials emitted to the sky remain in the atmosphere, but some ash would be deposited on land. There is also the risk of flooding in low-lying areas due to the melting of glacier under the influence of volcanic activity. This will not only cause the destruction of roads, but it may also cause loss of life due to flooding (Petersen et al., 2012). Conclusion The volcanic eruption has effects on social, economy and the environment. It causes disruptions in air travelling across the countries lying next to the eruption. The eruption is also affected by the prevailing weather condition around the place of eruption. The action by countries varies depending on the technical, infrastructure and legal systems to deal with the hazards like eruption and impacts to the economy. The initiatives after the eruption is limited to the type of ash the casualties and other factors. The Eyjafjallajökull eruption affected countries like UK, North Atlantic, European and other countries around the Iceland. References Bjornsson, H., Magnusson, S., Arason, P., & Petersen, G. N. (October 27, 2013). Velocities in the plume of the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 118, 20.) Carracedo, J. C., & Troll, V. R. (2013). Teide volcano: Geology and eruptions of a highly differentiated oceanic stratovolcano. Berlin: Springer. Goudie, A. (2010). . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Magnússon, E., Gudmundsson, M. T., Roberts, M. J., Sigurðsson, G., Höskuldsson, F., & Oddsson, B. (July 01, 2012). Ice-volcano interactions during the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption, as revealed by airborne imaging radar. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 117. McGuire, B., & Maslin, M. A. (2012). Climate Forcing of Geological Hazards. Chicester: Wiley. Petersen, G. N., Bjornsson, H., & Arason, P. (October 27, 2012). The impact of the atmosphere on the Eyjafjallajökull 2010 eruption plume. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 117. Smellie, J. L., Chapman, M. G., & Geological Society of London. (2002). Volcano-ice interaction on Earth and Mars. London: Geological Society. Webley, P. W., Steensen, T., Stuefer, M., Grell, G., Freitas, S., & Pavolonis, M. (October 27, 2012). Analyzing the Eyjafjallajökull 2010 eruption using satellite remote sensing, lidar and WRF-Chem dispersion and tracking model. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 117 Read More