Volcanic activity around El Hierro 2011/2012

[barcelonic]

Has anybody heard about what's going on down there?

On the Canarian ise of El Hierro lies an active volcano - there is one opening at the peak and another several hundred meters off the coast of the nearest village, La Restinga.

Last year in June there were thousands of 'tremors' recorded in just a few days, and they continued throughout the year.

The activity got better, then worse.

In late 2011 the waters around this area were filmed bubbling like a jacuzzi by three freshly0installed webcams and pumica clasts (lava bombs) have been seen rising to the surface.

La Restinga, which is bangi n the middle of the underwater opening and the on-land volcano, has been evacuated once during all of this and the Canary Government has been readying plans for an island-wide evacuation just in case it does not suibside again and the eruption intensifies.

All I can say is wow! I'd love to go there and see and feel some of this for myself. Maybe you can too lol - in the meantime here's an image I found of the pumice clasts (lava bombs) rising out of the waters just a stone's throw from La Restinga......

Spoiler

IMAGE OF THE 'LAVA BOMBS' IN ABOVE SPOILER

[MJ10]

Hmm, just been looking at booking a holiday and the canaries was on my list... perhaps not now!

Amazing picture!

[barcelonic]

Personally I'd see it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, i'd love to go.
Technically the volcano is erupting undersea right now people in the village aren't affected - it's the one on the island they're most worried about i think.

Interestingly the Canary Islands are the tips of a vast volcanic mountain range - if you use Google maps to look at it and then click satellite you can see it very clearly as Google have overlayed topographical maps over the whole world so looking at the seas is quite interesting.

Im actually looking at going to the Dead Sea when I next go on holiday. It's the lowest point on Earth - 400m below sea level. Because of its unique location the air is filled with bromide which is good for lung conditions and the air is among the cleanest in the world. The Sea itself is rich in calcium, potassium, magnesium & various other minerals which makes it about the healthiest natural spa in the world!
Furthermore, I read that the good UVA rays reach the area but harmful UVB rays don't, which if true means that you can go and get a tan without ever worrying about sunburn!!

PS. Also by the Dead Sea is the oldest city on Earth - Jericho. Could be an interesting detour

[Sufiyan]

Interesting post, barcelonic.. Got to know many new facts about the Dead Sea!

[barcelonic]

Originally Posted by Sufiyan

Interesting post, barcelonic.. Got to know many new facts about the Dead Sea!

i also learned a couple new facts too - the city of Stockholm in Sweden is built on 14 different islands, Istanbul in Turkey is the only city in the world to be built on two continents, and Denmark is made up of over 500 islands - its Capital, Copenhagen, being on the largest of them all.

As for the Dead Sea area, when swimming in the Sea people are advised to wear rubber-soled sandals because the salt cyrstals are so sharp they'll cut your feet - and trust me you wouldn't want to be in there with cuts on your skin - with that salt content it would sting real badly!! They also rub the mud from the seabed over their bodies as the minerals are good for the skin.
I also hear that as well as bromide the local air has among the highest oxygen content of any place on Earth. It kinda makes sense too because we know that when you climb mountains there is less oxygen and this is kind of the opposite with it being so low.

I've been thinking about whether to visit any cultural places nearby, of which there are lots. Im an atheist but I lopve history and King Herod's clifftop fortrress is nearby in Masada and is supposed to be amazing.

Another point of interest; Israel actually has coastline on four different seas - the Red Sea, The Dead Sea, The Mediterranean & the Sea of Galilee.

Sadly though I fear that soon Israel may be at war so I may delay any travel planning for now cus I wouldn't want to book in advance and then cancel and lose my money if war breaks out this year.

[Sufiyan]

Why do you think that there will be an Israelite war?!

[barcelonic]

Originally Posted by Sufiyan

Why do you think that there will be an Israelite war?!

well its just something i suspect. during the 2003 iraq war i believed the next war would be against Iran and that it wouldn't be far behind. iranian nuclear scientists have been assassinated lately in what is seen as an attempt by the west to slow down their nuclear research. i suspect Mossad are most likely behind it.

That said it is an election year in the US. I believe the Israelis are well aware of what that means for them - if Israel make a declaration of war against Iran the best time for them to do it would be a US election year as Obama would find it difficult to not ally with Israel at that time, politically i mean as he'd be up for reelection.

Plus my sister does a bit of writing and is passionate about the Middle East crisis and knows a lot more than me. She was so convinced it would be this year she tried to put a bet on at a bookies lol

Seriously though its just that Israel have made it clear they are not prepared to allow Iran to complete its nuclear programme, and I believe personally that if they feel they have the military support of the US they would attack Iran's facilities without hesitation because Iran already have fissionable materials plus missiles capable of reaching them.

If not 2012, sometime soon. But I believe the US govt would be interested in a war with Iran and also when the time is right, Venezuela. They want Hugo Chavez out and for a while now they've known the only way to do it is with military action.

PS. These are only my personal opinions and beliefs - I'm not claiming to be some kind of futurist im just thinking about my money cus i wouldn't wanna book a holiday and then not be able to get a refund because general travel insurance doesnt cover war.