Upon the eruption of a major volcano what are the most extreme environmental
effects that can occur both locally and globally (eg climatic effects). Why
do sunsets appear more 'dramatic' after an eruption (is it something to do
with the scattering effects of the dust particles)?
Question from UK
I guess the most serious nearby environmental effect is the burial by
either ash, mud, or lava. In many cases these materials bury the area
under 10's of meters. Certainly anyone caught by them will be killed, but
they are also difficult to farm on. At Pinatubo it has been recently
realized that the huge amount of ash deposited high on the slopes (where
very few people live) has since the main eruption caused way more damage
to the lower areas (where people DO live) than the original eruption
did.
Yes, the brilliant sunsets are caused by sulfuric acid aerosols that get
into the stratosphere. Only the largest eruptions get anything that high
(ash, gas, and aerosols in the troposphere get rained out within a few weeks).
Scott Rowland, University of Hawaii
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