The Enigma Surrounding the Vast Volcanic Eruption That Perplexed Scientists for Nearly Two Centuries at Last Unraveled
The Enigma Surrounding the Vast Volcanic Eruption That Perplexed Scientists for Nearly Two Centuries at Last Unraveled
The location of a colossal volcanic explosion that happened approximately 200 years ago has finally been deciphered due to traces of volcanic ash found in ice cores.
In 1831, well-known German composer Felix Mendelssohn described the chilling weather he experienced during his summer excursion through the Alps, mentioning that "it's as cold as winter, there's already deep snow on the nearest hills." This weather pattern continued to be gloomy and chilly for the following two years, resulting in widespread harvest failures, famine in Asia, and the initial major cholera outbreak in Europe.
Scientists have long surmised that this chilly period was caused by a massive volcanic eruption emitting sulfurous fumes and ash into the atmosphere. This volcanic cloud veil reflected sunlight, causing a global cooling of about 1 degree Celsius.
Though scientists had acknowledged it as a significant event, the volcano responsible for this eruption remained elusive and sparked heated discussion until now.
By examining traces of ash preserved in ice cores from Greenland, researchers in a new study developed a chemical profile of the lava that matched a volcano on an isolated island situated on the opposite side of the world.
"In recent times, we've gained the capacity to extract minuscule ash shards from polar ice cores and carry out intricate chemical assessments on them. These shards are incredibly tiny, measuring around one-tenth the diameter of a human hair," explains first author Dr. Will Hutchinson from the School of Earth and Environmental Science at the University of St Andrews in the U.K.
Dr. Hutchison and his team could accurately date and identify the ice core deposits to Zavaritskii volcano on the remote, sparsely inhabited island of Simushir, belonging to the Kuril Islands. These islands are presently a contested territory between Russia and Japan.
"We analyzed the ice's chemistry at an incredibly high resolution in time. This enabled us to pinpoint the precise moment of the eruption to spring-summer 1831, establish that it was highly explosive, and subsequently isolate the tiny ash fragments. The matching process took considerable time and required close collaboration with colleagues from Japan and Russia, who shipped us samples collected from these remote volcanoes decades ago."
"The exact instant in the lab when we compared the two ashes, one from the volcano and one from the ice core, was truly electrifying. I couldn't believe the numbers were identical. Following this, I spent a significant amount of time investigating the age and magnitude of the eruption in Kuril records to fully convince myself that the match was genuine."
The volcano that initiated the 1831 eruption was remarkably isolated, yet it had a detrimental impact on the climate and led to severe consequences for people.
Volcanic eruptions have the potential to induce severe climate change contingent upon the magnitude of the eruption and its location. When a volcano erupts in tropical areas, atmospheric currents running parallel to the equator can distribute ash and gases uniformly around the globe. In contrast, at higher latitudes, the atmospheric circulation is more complex, with cold air from the poles intermingling with warm air from the tropics, consequently affecting the climate differently.
Determining the locations of previous volcanic eruptions is of utmost importance, as it allows scientists to map and monitor the regions on Earth most likely to produce climate-altering volcanic events.
"There are numerous volcanoes like this, which underscores how challenging it will be to predict when or where the subsequent large-magnitude eruption might emerge," concludes Hutchison.
The study, titled "The 1831 CE mystery eruption identified as Zavaritskii caldera, Simushir Island (Kurils)," was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and can be accessed digitally here.
Further information and interviews were provided by University of Andrews.
The discovery of the volcano responsible for the 1831 eruption has opened up new avenues for understanding the impact of volcanic events on climate. This breakthrough in science could lead to more innovative methods for predicting future climate-altering volcanic activities.
With the advancements in technology, scientists can now investigate the chemical profiles of volcanic ash preserved in ice cores, enabling them to identify the source volcano more accurately, such as the Zavaritskii volcano in the Kuril Islands.