Potential Disaster in the Making 10

[phamENG]

Cumbre Vieja, a volcano on La Palma in the Canaries, just erupted a couple of hours ago. National Geographic did an episode on it as part of a 'Disaster Earth' series a few years ago. Essentially, there's evidence of a massive landslide on the island a few hundred millennia ago, the likes of which would have formed a tsunami large enough to hit the east coast of the US. A recent earthquake seems to have restarted the process and formed a large fissure along the island.

Here's to hoping it doesn't move any more....

 

[1503-44]

The 300m tall cone has entirely collapsed to the WSW, sliding down the slope and leaving an enormous revine in its wake.

More earthquakes to the south. 3.8

Apparently the feeding system is complex and involves several magma chambers at the 9 to 12km depth. Different materials have been progressively welling up into the magma supply chain over geologic history, as the island moved slowly to the north over the hot spot. The Cumbre Vieja, or old cone ridge to the south is actually the youngest region on the island.

 

[Alistair_Heaton]

There is notam

Which is notice to airmen which is temporary info of things that will effect a flight.

Ashtam

Which is volcanic ash to airmen.

Snowtam

Runway conditions due snow contamination to airmen.

There is I think 12 offices world wide that issue ashtam. Met office UK covers Iceland North Atlantic east, and Toulouse covers South Europe Africa Etna and Canaries.

UK has a Bae 146 set up for atmospheric sampling which does loads of work but can also do volcanic ash surveys. Don't have a clue if Toulouse has something similar.

Don't think the 146 is down there the Cranfield pilots are all still at home that fly it.

 

[1503-44]

Winds are wrather strong from the east, but the steam is backdrafting over the (unoccupied) houses near the coast before reaching the upper westerly flow.

 

[Alistair_Heaton]

That's your funny winds round the big rock doing there thing

There will be a low pressure zone behind it causing circulation back.

 

[1503-44]

Island in a stall.

No hang gliders for the last 10 days!

I'm wondering why we have no geothermal power stations here. There obviously must be geothermal potential.

Maybe too much, if anything.

 

[Alistair_Heaton]

they have started study's but there is lack of funding from the mainland and as you say it maybe a little bit too active.

https://www.geoenergymarketing.com/energy-blog/geothermal-country-overivew-the-canary-islands/

Found that on the subject

 

[1503-44]

I was vaguely aware of some.. rather unproductive studies having been .. thought about( ?). Too much thinking and not enough action. Lots of local PhDs involved. Kind of typical for these parts, including the mainland. Base load here is LNG gas generated and is going to get expensive, probably sooner than later. Maybe all this publicity will get the ball rolling and the pot boiling, so to speak. Then will come the anti-drilling for anything advocates. They may have a point, but I'd at least like to know if there are any viable options.

Solar and wind are well entrenched, but its base load that always turns out to be the most difficult nut to crack.

If Kenya can do it, we just need ... Japanese capital.

Maybe I've chanced into something more productive than "Engineering Disasters".

 

[Alistair_Heaton]

Mate they started talking about tidal power in the pentland firth between Scotland mainland and Orkney island before I went to uni over 30 years ago when they started shutting dunray nuke down. Still hasn't happened although they have had a few prototypes out.

Maybe I need to get our Icelandic lads to bid for TFS they are bound to be related to someone that does it at home.

 

[1503-44]

Those latitudes have some nice tides. There were some old tide powered water mills around these parts and the Azores, but that was a long time ago. Normal tides here are not more than 2m and there is not much storage potential, as there are no large bays that the tides move into and retreat from, so no large volumes of water to work with either. Wave power, a maybe at best. A little power 'till the big ones come, then they're gonna disappear in a winter storm. Occasionally they get up to 5-8m that I've seen.

The boil off is nontoxic .. so far.

 

[dik]

Thanks, Alistair...

Rather than think climate change and the corona virus as science, think of it as the wrath of God. Feel any better?

-Dik

 

[dik]

to drive air conditioners? Ground source heat pumps don't likely work very well either...

Rather than think climate change and the corona virus as science, think of it as the wrath of God. Feel any better?

-Dik

 

[dik]

The house is gone...

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-58733854

Rather than think climate change and the corona virus as science, think of it as the wrath of God. Feel any better?

-Dik

 

[Alistair_Heaton]

dik this isn't ground heat pump. This is water getting pumped down at 5 bar then getting super heated and then expanded through a turbine. Its basically a nuke with no nuke kettle.

The feed temp pre expansion is 250 to 300 deg C if its anything like Iceland.

oh and the other one which is actually more important is Sigmet which standards for significant weather.

Its imbedded thunderstorms, mountain wave and clear air turbulence and the like.

 

[dik]

Thanks... that's what I understood... I was trying to be humourous... but failed.

Rather than think climate change and the corona virus as science, think of it as the wrath of God. Feel any better?

-Dik

 

[Alistair_Heaton]

Oh and the pentland firth you can see a slope in the water at full tide run. Its basically the Atlantic ocean V the north sea through 5 miles of shallow water. The tide run is colossal you struggle sailing against it its well over 7 knots.

Having dived it the bottom is scoured rock completely featureless and no life.

 

[Alistair_Heaton]

its ok you know how even ex engineers get when talking tech. I think the geo term is high empathy heat source. Apparently when the valves screw up with it then there is a fecking colossal bang because there is no way of turning down the heat input unlike other thermal fuelled plants. Your only protection is a pressure relief valve and if the pumps fail your in deep poo. BUt at least when you vent its clean until you run out of none saline water. After that the ph drops rapidly to 2 or less and there is colossal volumes getting vented.

 

[itsmoked]

Re: The lone house. Looks like vindictive lava. One little tendril targeted it!

Keith Cress
kcress -

http://www.flaminsystems.com

 

[TheGreenLama]

I came across a blog post from 2017 discussing the possibility, or lack there of, of a mega-landslide on La Palma:

https://blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/2017/07/12/la-palma-mega-landslide-hypothesis-part-1/

https://blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/2017/07/14/la-palma-part-2/

And from 2016:

https://blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/2016/09/20/canary-islands-megatsunami/

 

[1503-44]

Thanks for your comment, however this topic has been the subject of lengthy discussions above. A tsunami might be possible in some kind of extreme doomsday scenario, however realistic east coast wave heights are thought to be limited to 25ft.

A series of earthquakes again struck the Fuentecaliente area to the south. Residents are preparing for evacuation. Some think they could indicate a potential for another eruption towards the South.

1 million kilos of bananas and all the natural salt in process of evaporative collection at the salt works below Fuentecaliente are lost, salt is blackened due to ash contamination. All N-S roads are cut, power lines damaged and important irrigation supply lines are out of service.

Air service is back... as long as the winds cooperate.

La Palma is getting bigger. A half km2 surface area was added by the solidifying 90m high lavafalls cascading into the Atlantic.

Apparently the stream of lava is solidifying along its edges and forming natural dikes, which hopefully will constrain future flows to within these banks.

 

[Alistair_Heaton]

can see them being able to fly for long