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Anatahan’s volcanic activity is escalating
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Posted on Jul 04 2004
Days after Typhoon Tingting damaged the only functional seismic station on Anatahan, authorities have managed to revive their monitoring capability of the island’s volcanic activity, which has escalated to its highest level this year.
Ash plume from the volcano became clearly visible from Saipan. The Emergency Management Office also reported that strong explosions threw out magmatic materials from the volcano’s crater. There was no reported ashfall on Saipan as of press time.
The EMO reported that ash plume from the volcano extended some 31 kilometers southwest of the volcano and below an altitude of 10,000 feet, citing satellite monitoring by the Washington Volcanic Ash Advisory Center.
“From the nature of the seismic signals, it appears that strombolian explosions are occurring every few tens of seconds to minutes,” the EMO said.
The EMO reiterated that aircraft should take precaution while flying in CNMI airspace, even though volcanic activity is not considered dangerous at the moment.
It said that aircraft should pass upwind of Anatahan or farther than 30 km downwind from the island, advising them to exercise due caution within 30-50 km of the island. The EMO stressed that volcanic activity could change anytime with little or no warning.
Authorities revived monitoring capability on Anatahan’s seismic activity last Friday, days after being knocked off by Tingting. It said, however, that volcanic activity subsided slightly after reaching its highest level for the year.
The EMO and the U.S. Geological Survey have been reporting sustained high seismicity level on Anatahan since late March this year.
Anatahan remains off-limits to the general public amid a standing emergency declaration by Gov. Juan N. Babauta, which restricts all travels to the island except for scientific expedition. According to the EMO, the off-limits zone extends to 10 nautical miles around Anatahan.
The governor placed Anatahan under such declaration days after the volcano’s big eruption on May 10 last year. The volcanic activity eventually slowed down, but regained intensity this year.
