Question: if a volcano erupted right near you would you be more excited or more scared?!!

Philippa Demonte answered on 18 Jun 2011:

@clogerina01 That all depends on the volcano! I was working at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory 3 years ago when lava started flowing down towards the sea. This was really exciting as it flowed slowly enough to get out of the lava’s way. Just as long as you didn’t go too near to where the lava flowed into the sea, as this creates laze = super heated hydrochloric acid steam – it’s nasty stuff and you really don’t want to breathe it in!

If Soufriere Hills Volcano were to erupt whilst I’m here in Montserrat, if I were out doing fieldwork at the time, bearing in mind that us volcanologists might be working as near as just 2 km from the main dome and that this particular volcano erupts explosively, I think I would be scared because it would be difficult to escape alive or without getting injured. If I were at the volcano observatory though or elsewhere on the island, i.e. a safe distance away, I think I’d be excited.

You might then ask why I am crazy enough to be working so close to the active part of the volcano, but I guess that’s the gamble. It is thrilling, but the volcanologists take good precautions. We have to wear these big heat-resistant overalls with a hood which in theory would allow us to survive a pyroclastic flow. We also wear hard hats to protect our heads from any flying hot rock and we take gas masks in case the volcanic gas levels rise or the wind suddenly blows the gases in our direction. Before we go out, we always check the seismic traces to see if the volcano is producing any mini earthquakes (which would tell us that the magma or gas levels within the volcano are rising), and we have walkie-talkies so that we are in constant contact with someone at the volcano observatory.

For me, all this is fun, but if you ask someone from Montserrat about the volcano, they don’t like it.