* Astronomy

Blobrana · L

RE: Auckland Volcanic Field

Blobrana · L

Study predicts 6km Auckland 'ring of death'

An Auckland volcano would create a probable 6km ring of death as the "base surge" of superheated gases and ash exploded outward at ground level, a newly published study says.
And the results indicate the number of people evacuated in the 2008 volcano emergency simulation - named Ruaumoko - was "much smaller than the one suggested by a rational cost-benefit analysis".
GNS chief volcanologist Gill Jolly, one of the paper's authors, said almost everyone caught in a base surge dies, for example, in the 1902 eruption of Mt Pelee on the Caribbean island of Martinique, 26,000 people caught in the base surge perished and only two survived.
Read more

Blobrana · L

More Volcanoes Recognised In Auckland

Twelve months after recognising a hidden volcano beneath Grafton in Auckland City, Bruce Hayward and his colleagues from Geomarine Research have done it again. This time they have identified four more, previously unknown volcanic craters in the southern part of the Auckland Volcanic Field.
Read more

Blobrana · L

New Research Reveals Forgotten Ancient Eruptions In Auckland

New research on Auckland's volcanic field has uncovered a volcano which had been all but forgotten, and this work will better define what is most likely to happen when the next volcano forms in Auckland. The research is part of the Devora project, a seven-year study to better understand the volcanic history of Auckland and help prepare the city for a future eruption.
Read more

Grafton, Auckland

Latitude: 36°51'46.00"S, Longitude: 174°46'12.97"E

Blobrana · L

About 80km below the volcanoes of Auckland there is thought to be a "hot spot" in the Earth's crust - a zone where hot magma can rise closer to the surface an occasionally produce a small eruption - small by geological measurement, but devastating for land and life around it.
It seems to be a moving zone. Half a million years ago it was a little further south, leaving a similar field of about 80 small volcanoes, now largely eroded away, in the Franklin district.
Read more

Blobrana · L

Project On Risk From Volcanoes In Auckland
A major research project is underway to improve the understanding of the vulnerability of the Auckland region to volcanic eruptions.
The aim of the seven-year, $5 million project is to better define Aucklands volcanic risk using the latest geological techniques and sophisticated computer modelling. The information provided by the project, called 'DEVORA' (DEtermining VOlcanic Risk in Auckland), will help Auckland become better prepared for and safer from a future volcanic eruption by enabling better decision making to protect assets and reduce potential casualties.

Read more

Blobrana · L

Geologists Find Buried Volcano Inside Panmure Basin
Geologists have found a buried volcano inside Panmure Basin, which is the mouth of a volcano that erupted about 28,000 years ago. It is extremely rare for two eruptions to have occurred at the same site in the Auckland Volcanic Field.
The discovery was made by a group of geologists from government-owned research and consultancy company GNS Science and The University of Auckland as they drilled into the basin from a barge this week to find out more about the volcanic history of volcanoes in the upper North Island.

Read more