Deadly 13th-Century Volcano Eruption: Mystery Solved?

National Geographic ^ | 9-30-2013 | Brian Handwerk

[Renfield]

One of history's great disaster mysteries may be solved—the case of the largest volcanic eruption in the last 3,700 years. Nearly 800 years ago, the blast that was recorded, and then forgotten, may also have created a "Pompeii of the Far East," researchers suggest, which might lie buried and waiting for discovery on an Indonesian island.

The source of an eruption that scattered ash from pole to pole has been pinpointed as Samalas volcano on Indonesia's Lombok Island. The research team, led by geographer Franck Lavigne of the Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, has now dated the event to between May and October of 1257. The findings were published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

"It's been a long time that some people have been looking," said Lavigne. After glaciologists turned up evidence for the blast three decades ago, volcano experts had looked for the origin of the eruption everywhere from New Zealand's Okataina volcano to Mexico's El Chichón.

The previously unattributed eruption was an estimated eight times as large as the famed Krakatau explosion (1883) and twice as large as Tambora in 1815, the researchers estimate. (Related: "Tambora: The Greatest Explosion in History.") "Until now we thought that Tambora was the largest eruption for 3,700 years," Lavigne said, but the study reveals that the 1257 event was even larger.....

[Renfield]

Ping

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

I always thought that Krakatoa was the biggest one.

[freedumb2003]

>>The cataclysm blasted 10 cubic miles (40 cubic kilometers) of debris up to 27 miles (43 kilometers) high into the sky, producing fallout that settled around the world.<<

It is hard to even imagine something that huge. If Krakatoa=200Mt then this would have been 1600Mt or more — 500 H bombs.

Probably could be heard halfway around the world (assuming Krakatoa was heard 3,000 miles away).

And Yosemite will dwarf them all.

And all because people in the 1200s would not stop using their cars to get to work.

[DuncanWaring]

Yosemite?

Or Yellowstone?

[RayChuang88]

The eruption of Krakatau produced less volcanic ash than the 1815 Tambora eruption, which spewed something like 15 cubic miles of volcanic ash into the atmosphere. That was enough to cause pretty severe climatic changes, including essentially eliminating summer at the higher latitudes in 1816.

Today, the Indonesian volcanoes are VERY closely monitored because almost every volcano in the Indonesian Archipelago is capable of spewing out gigantic amounts of volcanic ash into the atmosphere. One volcano on Sumatra island--Toba--is a true supervolcano that could spew well over 140 cubic miles of ash in a single eruption event, which would have devastating worldwide effects on agricultural production.

[Calvin Locke]

Re: Tambora

Even Thomas Jefferson noted the change in the weather. Then there are the news stories about the year (1816) without a Summer.

[freedumb2003]

>>Yosemite?

Or Yellowstone?<<

Thanks — I meant Yellowstone of course.

I was looking at some great pictures of the former recently so you can see how I messed it up.

The good news is that when the Yellowstone Caldera goes, my mistake will be erased along with the rest of humans.

[To Hell With Poverty]

Ha ha, thanks for getting me all nervous and then LOL!

[Inyo-Mono]

I’m sure he meant Yellowstone, though there was a volcanic event just a few miles southeast of Yosemite 750,000 years ago that killed large animals as far away as present day Kansas and dropped hot rocks on what is now New York: the Long Valley Caldera.

[Mike Darancette]

between May and October of 1257

Tracks with the beginning of the little ice age.

[Jack Hydrazine]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lombok

[DuncanWaring]

And if Yellowstone blows next year, it won’t be early, and if it doesn’t blow for another 10,000 years, it won’t be late.

[Jack Hydrazine]

[freedumb2003]

>>And if Yellowstone blows next year, it won’t be early, and if it doesn’t blow for another 10,000 years, it won’t be late.
<<

Just like my ex-wife.

[Vendome]

Equivocator . . .

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

If Krakatoa=200Mt then this would have been 1600Mt or more — 500 H bombs.

So, was there the equivalent of a “nuclear winter”, or did the explosion create glo-bull warming?

[DBrow]

It could have started the Little Ice Age which lasted quite a while. Solar activity during LIA was low, so maybe the combination?

[USNBandit]

Don't stop him, he's on a roll.

[GreyFriar]

And it was George W. Bush’s fault!