Free Republic

When Mount Ruang in Indonesia underwent multiple explosive eruptions last week, volcanic gases were flung so high they reached the atmosphere’s second layer, tens of thousands of feet above ground. The force of Mount Ruang’s eruptions this week ejected an ash plume tens of thousands of feet in the air and sent some volcanic gases more than 65,000 feet into the air, according to satellite estimates – about 25,000 feet higher than a commercial airplane will typically fly. The eruption’s potential impacts to weather and climate are starting to come into focus, even as the danger posed by the volcano...

At least 11,000 people were forced to evacuate after a volcano erupted in Indonesia. The government is encouraging residents to leave with fears that part of the volcano could break off into the ocean and trigger a tsunami.

A volcano erupted several times in Indonesia's outermost region Wednesday, with authorities raising the alert level to its highest point after the dome spewed a column of smoke more than a mile into the sky and forced hundreds to evacuate. Mount Ruang, a stratovolcano in North Sulawesi Province, first erupted at 9:45 pm on Tuesday (1345 GMT) and four times throughout Wednesday, the country's volcanology agency said. The alert level for the volcano, which has a peak of 725 meters above sea level, was then raised on Wednesday evening from three to four, the highest possible level in the four-tiered...