Frequency of large volcanic eruptions over the past 200 000 years

The mechanics of large volcanic eruptions

The mechanical conditions for a volcanic eruption to occur are conceptually simple: a magma-driven fracture (normally a dyke) must be able to propagate from the source to the surface. The mechanics of small to moderate (eruptive volumes less than 10 km 3 ) is reasonably well understood, whereas that of large eruptions (eruptive volumes of 10-1000 km 3 ) is poorly understood. Here I propose that...

Winter Warming from Large Volcanic Eruptions

An examination of the Northern Hemisphere winter surface temperature patterns after the 12 largest volcanic eruptions from 1883-1992 shows warming over Eurasia and North America and cooling over the Middie East which are significant at the 95% level. This pattern is found in the first winter after tropical eruptions, in the first or second winter after midlatitude ruptions, and in the second wi...

European summer temperature response to annually dated volcanic eruptions over the past nine centuries

The drop in temperature following large volcanic eruptions has been identified as an important component of natural climate variability. However, due to the limited number of large eruptions that occurred during the period of instrumental observations, the precise amplitude of post-volcanic cooling is not well constrained. Here we present new evidence on summer temperature cooling over Europe i...

The frequency of explosive volcanic eruptions in Southeast Asia

There are ~750 active and potentially active volcanoes in Southeast Asia. Ash from eruptions of volcanic explosivity index 3 (VEI 3) and smaller pose mostly local hazards while eruptions of VEI ≥ 4 could disrupt trade, travel, and daily life in large parts of the region. We classify Southeast Asian volcanoes into five groups, using their morphology and, where known, their eruptive history and d...

Volcanic Eruptions