Ian
priscilla 1Nyiragongo Crater
April 25th 2011 02:30
Mount Nyiragongo is a stratovolcano in the Virunga Mountains associated with the Great Rift Valley. It is located inside Virunga National Park, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo just west of the border with Rwanda.
The main crater is about two km wide and usually contains a lava lake. Nyiragongo's lava lake has at times been the most voluminous known lava lake in recent history. The depth of the lava lake varies considerably. A maximum elevation of the lava lake was recorded at about 3250 m (10,700 ft) prior to the January 1977 eruption - a lake depth of about 600 m (2000 ft).
Nyiragongo and nearby Nyamuragira are together responsible for 40% of Africa's historical volcanic eruptions.
The Big Picture at Boston.com has obtained various images and information from June 2010 trip to the crater by scientists. Some images are below. Click here to read the full article.
*This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article for Mount Nyiragongo.
The main crater is about two km wide and usually contains a lava lake. Nyiragongo's lava lake has at times been the most voluminous known lava lake in recent history. The depth of the lava lake varies considerably. A maximum elevation of the lava lake was recorded at about 3250 m (10,700 ft) prior to the January 1977 eruption - a lake depth of about 600 m (2000 ft).
Nyiragongo and nearby Nyamuragira are together responsible for 40% of Africa's historical volcanic eruptions.
The Big Picture at Boston.com has obtained various images and information from June 2010 trip to the crater by scientists. Some images are below. Click here to read the full article.
The view from the volcano’s rim, 11,380 feet above the ground. At 1,300 feet deep, the lava lake has created one of the wonders of the African continent.
At the surface of the lake, bubbles of gas explode. The surface is permanently churned by fury from the earth's crust.
Even though the lava lake often overflows, the seven members of the expedition yearn to walk its shores.
The goal of the expedition is to reach the rim of the lava lake. Nobody has previously survived such an encounter.
Marc Caillet is the first member of the team to reach the lake’s rim.
An overflow starts at the beginning of the night. Year after year, the lava reaches higher along the crater walls, until another breach or an eruption empties the vessel. The goal of the expedition is to increase volcanologists’ knowledge and ability to predict such an event and prevent another disaster.
*This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article for Mount Nyiragongo.
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