Editor-DN
Scientists have finally solved the long-standing mystery of why the Sun turned blue in Earth’s atmosphere about 200 years ago. A massive volcanic eruption in 1831 has been attributed to the color change as a massive plume of sulfur dioxide was released into the atmosphere, causing global cooling and our planet’s somewhat strange appearance this year. Forced to host a host of weather conditions.
A study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) have found that the Zavaritskii volcano on the remote, uninhabited island of Samoshir—now a disputed territory between Russia and Japan—was ground zero for an eruption that changed the planet.
Scientists at the University of St Andrews in Scotland analyzed ice core records from the 1831 event to confirm their findings. He added that there are no written records of direct observation of the 1831 eruption because the island on which the eruption occurred is remote and largely uninhabited.
“The moment in the laboratory when we analyzed two ash streams together, one from a volcano and one from an ice core, was a true eureka moment,” study co-author Will Hutchison said in a statement.
“We analyzed the chemistry of the ice at a very high temporal resolution. This allowed us to pinpoint the exact time of the eruption in spring-summer 1831, confirming that it was very explosive. , and then scooped out small pieces of ash,” added Mr Hutchison.
While the team solved the mystery of the 1831 eruption and its effect on the Sun, Mr Hutchinson noted that they still had no instruments to indicate volcanic activity on the remote island.
“If this burst happened today, I don’t think we’d be much better off than we were in 1831. It just shows how difficult it is to predict when and where the next big burst of climate change will come from.”
Read this also A six-in-one chance of a massive volcanic eruption this century. Will it trigger climate chaos?
A massive volcanic eruption
1831 was not the only time a volcanic eruption had a global impact. In 1815, the eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia left the planet without summer for a year. The eruption released 24 cubic miles of gases, dust and rock into the atmosphere, causing global temperatures to drop, resulting in a 1 degree Celsius cooling in the Northern Hemisphere.
Scientists have warned that there is a one in six chance that a similar volcanic eruption that could disrupt life on the planet will occur this century.
The economic impact of a large-scale eruption can be staggering, with losses potentially running into the trillions. Furthermore, any cooling effect would be short-lived, as the planet would soon return to its warming trajectory due to continued greenhouse gas emissions.
