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Posted: 31-10-2002 09:00 Post subject: Volcano

Now that Mount Etna is erupting again (brilliant satellite photos on the link) it seems a good time to ask whether there are any good Fortean stories about volcanoes. Or have we become so used to the scientific descriptions of them that they no longer have an other worldly aura?

Certainly in the past they were regarded as manifestations of the gods; more recently SF writers thought extinct volcanoes might lead to the centre of the Earth.

Historically they have been considered as the cause of the downfall of civilizations, in the Med and elsewhere. Then there are tales of Pompei and Herculaneum.

Volcano stories please!

Posted: 31-10-2002 23:11 Post subject:

I have just watched 'Time Team', which was about the wreck of HMS Colossus in the Scilly Isles. It seems the ship was bringing back from Naples an archaeological collection belonging to Sir William Hamilton (husband of Emma, the lover of Lord Nelson).

William was an amateur archaeologist who had taken part in excavations in Pompeii and Herculaneum....

What are the chances of that happening, eh?

Posted: 31-10-2002 23:32 Post subject:

Cool pics-seems Europe is hotting up a bit recently , with the Earthquakes here and in Italy and Mt Etna going off . Wonder if it the start if a trend ?

Posted: 01-11-2002 00:03 Post subject:

Certainly seems that way, the nearest plate margin which could cause fault movement like that seen in Manchester area is the Africa/Europe plate.....the Mid Atlantic ridge isnt that powerful.

So yea theres probably been an increase in subduction of these two plates causing the recent activity

Posted: 01-11-2002 09:30 Post subject:

Personally I find the idea of the Yellowstone National Park Super Volcano a bit worrying.

I remember stories a few years ago about a Park Surveyor taking ordnance levels of a lake a few years apart.
He was perplexed as to why some trees that were at the lake's edge were now standing in water - he thought that the lake was probably fuller than it had been, until he compared levels.
He found that the ground around the lake had bulged and the water had literaly slid downhill a bit.

Further reasearch showed that around a quarter of the Park was atop a huge magma bubble (I think it's called a batholith?) which is set to explode and wreak havoc upon the Earth.

Another extinction factor. Great. hah

Here's a link

Posted: 01-11-2002 15:24 Post subject:

The earthquake activity around Naples is worrisome. In addition to Vesuvius, there is a potentially very dangerous volcanic area called the Campi Flegrei complex.

Posted: 03-11-2002 12:31 Post subject:

Posted: 03-11-2002 13:34 Post subject:

Posted: 03-11-2002 16:38 Post subject:

Good theory by the Moslem extremists, Rynner, it's a shame that one of the active volcanic areas (around Indonesia) has a large Moslem population. What will happen to them when/if Anak Krakatau and its like explode? Will Allah perhaps come down in a chariot of fire and whisk them all to safety, leaving the infidels behind?

Carole

Posted: 04-11-2002 19:55 Post subject: volcano power

Anybody ever seen a halfway feasible way of controlling or using the power of volcanoes?
outside of Bond films, that is
steve b

Posted: 04-11-2002 20:20 Post subject: Re: volcano power

Posted: 05-11-2002 11:26 Post subject:

Years ago - well the early 80's anyway - when I was at school I'm sure I remember reading/being told (probably in a geology lesson) about a plan to tap into geothermal energy in Cornwall. There's a large batholith under Cornwall which is stilll comparatively warm and the idea was to sink a shaft down and use the heat to power turbines. Obviously nothing ever came of it, but I've always wondered whether it might one day be practical - and it's as 'green' as it's possible to get.

Posted: 05-11-2002 13:03 Post subject:

Well, not strictly Fortean, but have had a couple of quite trippy volcano experiences. Just walking around the caldera of Kilauea is VERY weird, seeing where the Earth is being created and all that, plus sulphur banks, and the rest....very odd. And sleeping at 10,000 ft on Mauna Loa, seeing a field of stars one never knew existed is a once in a lifetime experience. Otherworldly in the extreme.

There was some talk of a geothermal power plant off of the Big Island of Hawai'i some years ago, but I don't believe it ever got off the ground, so to speak.

Posted: 05-11-2002 18:52 Post subject:

Posted: 05-11-2002 18:57 Post subject: