Volcano

Because Al Gore hasn't come up with a new name yet, and because nobody got hurt, the major news outlets haven't covered it. So maybe you haven't heard.

There was a major eruption on a remote Alaskan island yesterday that spewed volcanic ash at least 50,000 feet into the air.

Ten people, including three children, on a private ranch 6 miles from the eruption, were able to get through to the Coast Guard before their sat phone cut out, and were rescued by a fishing boat. The site is almost 900 miles southwest of Anchorage.

I'm sure the green lobby is going to come up with a way to blame us for this natural occurance. And I'm equally sure they will ignore the quantity of so-called greenhouse gasses that were emited into the atmosphere by that one seismic event.

Incidentally, there was virtually no warning. Seismologists had just begun detecting "minor tremors" when the thing blew its top.

I had not heard about that.

Well - now isn't it our fault that all these tornadoes have been badgering the midwest? Also - aren't we totally responsible for Katrina?
And don't forget the tsunami!

And I think our ancestors were responsible for the Black Plague.

We bad - so bad.

But Gore and the green lobby aren't responsible!

To Gore and his Gories: BITE ME. Luv, Mama

The eruption was 60 miles west of the island of Unalaska, out on the Aleutian chain, KYH. This island connects to the island of Umnak and the body of water between them is Dutch Harbor, where the North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea meet. DH is the largest fishing port in the western hemisphere. This is home to the world's largest catches of cod, pollack, and Red King, Brown King, Opilio, Bairdi, Tanner and Dungeness crabs... also world record halibut are caught there, (400++ lbs.) as well as all species of salmon.

In '92 I was the sous chef at the Unisea Inn, overlooking the small boat harbor there, and from '96-'00 I cooked at and managed the OSI Bunkhouse- a Fishermen's Inn. My all-time favortie job ever- hands down. The cooking was probably the least glamourous I ever did professionally, but I loved all other aspects of the position. This is truly a beautiful, special place- so special in fact that I hope to arrange to have a portion of my ashes scattered there when I am gone- a hundred years from now!

(Tried to post some pics, but wasn't successful for whatever reason. AGGGHHH!)

I knew it was near Dutch Harbor, Kevin, but not the specific island.

It just amuses me how a major occurance like that can be virtually ignored by the mass media.

But like I said, soon as Gore and and his Gories (I love that, Mama) find some way to capitalize on it the world will be wringing it's collective hands.

Not ignored. More like played down to almost the insignificant level. Over a year ago I was telling acquaintances and friends, don't be concerned until you start seeing strange weather conditions, volcanoes, earthquakes, etc., at unusual locations. That still applies and it will be getting worse. There are stresses being placed on our tilted planet by an outside source and it does no good to make public announcements about it because people get irrational and panic.

Though, Alaska's Aleutian Islands are certainly not an unusual place for volcano erutpions or earthquakes, CanMan.

AK is part of our planet's infamous "Ring of Fire".

Let's not forget the tragic Good Friday quake March 27 of '64, which at 9.2 was the second strongest quake ever recorded (first was the 9.5 in Chile in '60) and the strongest ever felt north of the equator. Rough stuff...

And right here in central Illinois we felt a tremor recently from our usually dormant New Madrid fault... Historians tell us that one of the strongest quakes ever felt happened here in 1812 'tho too ealry to be measured. Yikes!

And of course you're out in Cali where quakes are quite certainly a way of life... so you're defintiely no stranger to the earth's shaking and shimmying! Yikes!

Kev I will never forget my 1st earthquake: I was getting ready for work and was applying my mascara and the shaking started and I felt like I was having a "dizzy spell" or something it TOOK ME "A FEW" to figure out what was going on having grown up in Miami, FL it was a blast I loved it!!! How exciting to experience a whole new phenominum from the blowing and howling of a hurricane! Of-course I will never forget it. But I am one who loved wicked weather, kind of like some folks who like scarrey movies!!! Gives me an adrenaline rush, I hate to admit it but I think I should have went into a different profession, hee-hee. But I will state just for the record: I don't want to experience a volcano, I do not consider that fun and I really hate the thought of one erupting near-by, I feel sorry for those who live near the hot things.

Memories of friends shoveling ash off their homes because of Mt. St. Helen's.

Boy of boy, Kevin, do I remember that quake. The military's top security lines were down more than 12 hours. Can you imagine what civilian traffic must have been like? They're probably still playing catch-up.

Interesting comment about the ash, Mama. And, to show you the effects that volcanos can have on both weather and geology:

Mt. St. Helens---just one little old volcano mind you---dropped up to two inches of ash 200 miles away. And ash was falling on the Atlantic Ocean for weeks afterwards.

Now, let's go back a few years. Marking the Permian Extinction (that's when the dinosaurs disappeared, literally over-night) is a four foot layer of volcanic tuff and fosillized ash. This is a layer that covered the entire globe, so you can imagine the volcanic activity that caused it.

With all that ash in the air the earth became a giant hothouse (and, oh gee, we weren't even around to take the blame, Mr. Gore), leading to the warming of the oceans, which caused snow to fall in arctic regions, the weight of which caused the ice to squeeze out and cover a significant portion of the northern hemisphere.

Old species, like the giant reptiles, disappeared. And new species, like those new-fangled mammals, became dominent.

Tectonic plates floated around like a raft on a white-water river. Oceans flooded and receeded. Mountains poofed out, and were eroded down. Mankind achieved dominion over the earth, and invented spray cans and greenhouse gasses that led, according to the Gories, to global warming.

And all of it the result of a little ash from a couple of volcanos.

Yeah, mama... That volcanic ash is a real BEAR. Gets into everything and is quite a nuisance. However the one benefit is it's played a role in giving Alaska some really fertile, rich growing soil. Those record cabbages and such that everyone often sees is the result of that rich soil, plus the 24 hour sunshine and morning rainfalls.

I've felt many tremors, but the worst one I was ever in resulted in no real damage per se, as far as great loss or injury- just very minor destruction... I was working at the Kenai Princess Lodge on the Kenai Peninsula in Cooper Landing, Alaska. The shakin' and shimmyin' commenced and we lost several shelves of stacked china and glassware, a few windows and a light fixture hanging above an antique wood stove fell and busted apart the fancy ornament atop that stove. Also, when I trudged home to my cabin later after my shift was over a beautiful potted amaryllis I had on my dresser which was situated right up against the railing of my second-story sleeping loft had tumbled off my dresser fell to the kitchen floor below and shattered into bits. Poor amaryllis- prolly didn't feel a thing though- it was so quick!

Wow KYH just reading that gives one an adrenaline rush! LOL

Poor ole' dino! I am kinda glad I don't have to share my garden with the likes of them though!

The interesting facts that surround such phenomenon are always quirky... The Alaska quake of '64 killed a few in Alaska of course, but the Tsunami created as a result of the quake also killed folks on the beach in Oregon and Cali. Other interesting quirky facts- boats in the Gulf of Mexico were SUNK due to the reciprocal action in the water resulting from the quake- AND clear over on the other side of the world in South Africa water levels in wells and toilets fell as a result of the Alaska quake. Isn't that WEIRD?

And then there is the Yellowstone Caldera and the increasing number of deaths that are occurring due to unexpected changes in the surroundings. The park doesn't like talking about such things, saying people come here to be happy and entertained, not to be told the bad things. There is a serious indication that an eruption will occur at this location in the near future.

"The volume of volcanic rock produced by the first Yellowstone caldera eruption was about 600 cubic miles—about 17 times more than Tambora, and 2,400 times as much as Mount St. Helen's, an almost incomprehensible figure. One more statistic: Ash from Tambora drifted downwind more than 800 miles; Yellowstone ash is found in Ventura, California to the west and the Iowa to the east. It is likely the earth has seldom in its long history experienced caldera explosions on the scale of those that created Yellowstone." Reference

Always nice to have something to look forward to.

CanMan said:

Always nice to have something to look forward to.

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Now you are "cracking me up" with that line CanMan

I love it!!!

I know on a serious note it'll be tragic & just terrible, but we have to live in the here and now and cope with each day as it unfolds.

I am glad I got to visit Yellowstone, but when I visited it really "hit home" just how seismic the area is!!! And yet so beautiful in and of itself. I am so glad for that experience of having "been there and done that"!

Great info, CanMan...

I tell ya, we as humans definitely have OUR perspective... but when it comes right down to it- the earth isn't here for US... we are here for IT. Dirt everywhere is just silently WAITING for our crusty bones to be lowered down into it so we can fortify it, make it rich, so that more corn can be produced to sustain more animals so that they too can die and feed the dirt! Ahhhh... the circle of life!

Cook Chatty Cathy said:

I know on a serious note it'll be tragic & just terrible, but we have to live in the here and now and cope with each day as it unfolds.

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Hell on Earth I think it is said, but fortunately the end result will be worth the suffering we have been put through. If true, we will move on to one lifetime taking up 2,125 years (+/-). If not, well who knows. All roller coaster rides come to an end.

I am glad I got to visit Yellowstone, but when I visited it really "hit home" just how seismic the area is!!! And yet so beautiful in and of itself. I am so glad for that experience of having "been there and done that"!

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Yes, rather awesome and people ARE encourage to visit it now, not so much for the beauty, but to notice what is happening there and the changes. Mother Earth at her best.

chubbyalaskagriz said:

Great info, CanMan...
I tell ya, we as humans definitely have OUR perspective...

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Made even nicer perhaps knowing that it is not my perspective or opinion for most of it, but facts gleaned from a couple years of research. Still a lot more to do.

but when it comes right down to it- the earth isn't here for US... we are here for IT.

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Entirely correct and we have ignored and abused her terribly this time around, but she will be around and happy long after we have left and made room for another species to evolve on/in this water planet. Our future apparently is more far reaching, but there is some prophecies that some will be here as Guardians of the next species to develop, just as the Guardians have done for us (oops, forget I mentioned that).

Dirt everywhere is just silently WAITING for our crusty bones to be lowered down into it so we can fortify it, make it rich, so that more corn can be produced to sustain more animals so that they too can die and feed the dirt!

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Yes, our mortal bodies do make great fertilizer. Would hardly seem to be a purpose unless you understand that we are a "spiritual" being and that's not just a silly quote from the religious publication.

If one remembers school learning, there is a reference about matter and energy. Matter converts to energy, energy can convert to matter, but the bottom line is that energy cannot be destroyed, though it may change form. Scientists have been puzzled why matter stays together as it does....going back to the "Big Bang" when matter was first created. Why/How did we end up with a "soul" that is energy only that wants to stay together and uses the body to experience "life". You may have read that scientists now have pretty proven the existence of "dark matter", aka "the God particle", as the ingredient that holds all things together instead of just being pure loose energy. One learns more about the workings of God everyday and the awesomeness of what he/it accomplished.

Yup, it gets deep.

You bet it is indeed deep when you stop and really think about it! But then our thinking is so limited, even the smartest of us still don't know it all! I find that a very comforting thought!!! LOL

You know some of my favorite heroes through life have been the simple and gentlest of all. Like Mother Theresa, many of the Saints throughout history, and one new one that Nan wrote about a few weeks back....Irena Sendler of Poland (in the Thread named: This is really frightening by: KYH) simple, beautiful people!

CanMan said:

If one remembers school learning, there is a reference about matter and energy. Matter converts to energy, energy can convert to matter, but the bottom line is that energy cannot be destroyed, though it may change form. Scientists have been puzzled why matter stays together as it does....going back to the "Big Bang" when matter was first created. Why/How did we end up with a "soul" that is energy only that wants to stay together and uses the body to experience "life". You may have read that scientists now have pretty proven the existence of "dark matter", aka "the God particle", as the ingredient that holds all things together instead of just being pure loose energy. One learns more about the workings of God everyday and the awesomeness of what he/it accomplished..

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And in support of this- wasn't it Einstein who said that <paraphrasing> "the spirit is 100% ENERGY and once created, ENERGY can never disappear. It may change form- but it's always here and can never go away."