brainwagon

Yesterday I mentioned the live webcam views of the Augustine Island volcano, today I thought I’d give you a link to Google’s satellite view of the island, since it is still dark at this moment and all you can see in the webcam is black. A quick bit of Googling to find the volcanos latitude and longitude and then going to the sunrise calculator at the US Naval Observatory reveals that morning twilight should just be beginning, with sunrise officially at 9:39 Alaska standard time.

Update: Apparently an eruption is actually underway, with some ash falling. From their website:

Level of Concern Color Code: RED

Several explosive events occurred at Augustine Volcano this morning: at approximately 3:55 AM AST (13:24 UTC); 8:47 AM AST (17:47); and 11:22 AM AST (20;22). Pilot reports and satellite imagery confirm ash clouds in excess of 30,000 ft above sea level moving eastward. Seismic data suggest that pyroclastic flows and lahars (volcanic mudflows) are occurring on the flanks of the island and possibly extending beyond.

Similar short-lived explosive activity is expected to continue over the next several days or weeks. Individual explosions are expected to produce ash plumes accompanied by pyroclastic flows and lahars (volcanic mudflows) on the flanks of the volcano.

[tags]Volcano,Google Maps,Sunrise,Sunset[/tags]