Just off the Canary Island of El Hierro there are strange bubbling volcanic eruptions spotted for the first time in October. These eruptions cause up to 65-foot high shooting fountains of scalding water and pumice stone.
Amazingly, some scientists predict that these eruptions could create a brand new underwater island. Some Spanish media have begun naming these eruptions “a new monster emerging from the sea.” The eruptions cause the ocean water to boil, and have become more frequent. The whirlpools stretch as far as 35 feet in diameter.
Over the weekend hundreds of people were evacuated from the area and roads were blocked due to the overpowering sulfur smell. Since the first eruption there has been a three-fold uptick in carbon dioxide levels. Some scientists say that the eruption will reach land, especially because the most recent expulsion was close to the shore.
The southern coast of El Hierro has been carpeted by the pumice and ash from the volcano. However, geochemists are saying that the volcano has the potential to explode. The magma has a high concentration of Si02, or silica, which potentially leads to gas accumulation, a dangerous and explosive mixture.
65-foot high cascades of water.
