Why volcano lightning

Eventually, this charge builds up similar to the way it does in a normal cloud, producing a lightning strike. While analysing their findings, the team noticed that that the frequency of the lightning strikes increased with the size of the ash plume.

This correlation, they hope , will offer a new way to gauge how large an eruption is and how much ash is thrown into the air without putting researchers in danger. In that instance, the lightning peaked at the onset of a pyroclastic flow—a dangerous avalanche of hot rocks and ash.

Together, the results hint that these spikes in lightning rates reflect some key change early in the eruption. As Van Eaton and her colleagues note in the study, there's still a large amount of uncertainty associated with general estimates of mass spewing from a volcano based on satellite imagery. Cimarelli, a National Geographic grantee, replicates volcanic lightning in miniature eruptions to meticulously control each factor.

Though the scales vastly differ, lightning in these lab-made eruptions similarly peaks in their initial stages. Then, the flashes become less frequent as the plume expands, likely because the distance between particles—and their ability to charge and discharge—grows ever longer, he says.

Still, there's much more to be studied. The new study hints there may be some difference, but it seems to be small. I hope that this will trigger a lot of interesting modeling work, and people who can take these observations and take them to the next level. All rights reserved. One volcano is not like the others A large part of scientists' clues to pending volcanic eruptions comes from a network of seismometers that measures Earth's many grumbles.

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But will they invade your privacy? Go Further. All of the above! During the eruption of Mount St. Helens, Washington, for instance, the thick volcanic plume produced bolts of lightning connecting to the ground, sheet lightning connecting in the plume itself, and ball lightning bouncing near the volcano. Also called an eruption column. The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit.

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Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. You cannot download interactives. According to the United States Geologic Survey, there are approximately 1, potentially active volcanoes worldwide.

Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first. As the Taal volcano erupts near Manila, Philippines, blanketing the surrounding island of Luzon in thick plumes of ash and sending streaks of lightning into the sky, volcanic experts break down the science behind the phenomenon. According to Kelman, the phenomenon begins when water interacts with magma in an explosive fragmentation of hot rock under Lake Taal.

The rocks, which erupt as a result of the explosion, break into even smaller particles known as volcanic ash. A turbulent column of volcanic ash rises, creating a plume full of charged particles that eventually plummets, covering the ground in ash. Particles crash into one another, illuminating the skies with hazardous lightning.

He said electrical charges dispatched through static electricity are the essence of volcanic lightning.