September
At the end of August and into September, we heard that there were signs of unrest at one of the world’s most famous volcanoes – Tambora. However, unlike many of the news stories, a new eruption of Tambora is not likely to destroy us all. Another favorite of the doom-and-gloom crowd, Katla, also rumbled, with seismic swarms that continued into the fall, making 2011 one of the most seismically-active years in the past decade at Katla. The eruption at Puyehue-Cordón Caulle in Chile continued, but the activity was more subdued so flights could resume to cities close to the volcano. I took a look at the rumblings in Colombia this year – not a lot of activity, but plenty of noise. El Hierro was also beginning to get more interesting, as the seismicity increased. I also made the move here to Wired during the middle of the month. And Etna erupted (see above).
Image: Etna erupting in late September 2011. Image courtesy of Dr. Boris Behncke, INGV Catania.