Mapping Changes in Airspace - Volcanic Impact on European Air Traffic

I though this was a fascinating display of airspace and the recent Icelandic volcano's impact of European air traffic.


Airspace Rebooted from ItoWorld on Vimeo.



A quick "cut & paste" from the site:"... A visualisation of the northern European airspace returning to use after being closed due to volcanic ash. Due to varying ash density across Europe, the first flights can be seen in some areas on the 18th and by the 20th everywhere is open.


The flight data is courtesy of www.flightradar24.com and covers a large fraction of Europe. There are a few gaps (most noticeably France) and no coverage over the Atlantic, but the picture is still clear.
The map data is CC-by-SA www.openstreetmap.org and contributors.


This CC-by-SA visualisation was produced by www.itoworld.com with support from www.ideasintransit.org ..."

 

Cool Geo-Pic - Mt Redoubt, AK

This Cool Geo-Pic comes again from NASA's Earth Observatory. They don't have these in Louisiana!

Mt. Redoubt Volcano, Alaska

download large image (5 MB, JPEG) acquired March 26, 2009

Quick "Cut & Paste" Highlights:

" ...After weeks of heightened seismic activity, Alaska’s Redoubt Volcano began erupting explosively on the night of March 22, 2009. On March 26, 2009, the volcano erupted again, sending a column of ash some 19,800 meters (65,000 feet) above sea level, and sending a lahar—a slurry of water and volcanic debris—through the Drift River Valley....."

" ....Redoubt is a stratovolcano composed of alternating layers of hardened lava, solidified volcanic ash, and debris produced by earlier eruptions. Sitting on the western side of Cook Inlet, the volcano rises to a height of 3,106 meters (10,197 feet). It is part of the Pacific “Ring of Fire”—a horseshoe–shaped zone of heightened seismic activity around the Pacific Ocean Basin..."

Full Article - Click Here

References / Credits:
Alaska Volcano Observatory. (2009, March 26). Alaska Volcano Observatory Current Status Report. Accessed March 31, 2009.

Global Volcanism Program. Redoubt. Smithsonian Institution. Accessed March 31, 2009.
NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the USGS Land Remote Sensing Program. Caption by Michon Scott.
Instrument:
Landsat 5 - TM

Cool Geo-Pic: Get Out of Chaiten

This Cool Geo-Pic comes again from NASA's Earth Observatory. Perhaps the phrase, "Get out of Chaiten" is in order. The false color composite shows vegetation as red.

download large image (6 MB, JPEG) acquired January 19, 2009

Quick "Cut & Paste" Highlights:

" ... Chile’s Chaitén Volcano had been dormant for more than 9,000 years when it erupted in May 2008. In the months that followed, the volcano remained active, releasing plumes of steam and volcanic ash, coating local vegetation, clogging waterways, and inundating the nearby town of the same name. On January 19, 2009, an explosive dome collapse occurred at the volcano, according to a bulletin from the Volcanism Blog...."

Full Article - Click Here

References / Credits:

Smithsonian Institution Global Volcanism Program. Chaitén Summary. Accessed January 20, 2008.
The Volcanism Blog. (2009, January 19). Dome collapse event at Chaitén. Accessed January 20, 2009.
NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of NASA/GSFC/METI

Cool Geo-Pic: Sulfur Dioxide from Okmok Volcano

Sulfur Dioxide from Okmok Volcano
Click here to view full image (2533 kb)

"Cut & Paste" Highlights:

On July 12, 2008, Okmok Volcano, in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands erupted, releasing a plume of ash and steam. Besides emissions visible to human eyes, Okmok also released sulfur dioxide, a gas our eyes cannot see, but which can affect both human health and climate.

The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument on NASA’s Aqua satellite measured the sulfur dioxide from Okmok Volcano from July 12-20, 2008. This image shows the estimated sulfur dioxide at altitudes around 16 kilometers (10 miles) released by the volcano over that time span, with red indicating the highest levels, and pale pink indicating the lowest. The sulfur dioxide was most intense southeast of the volcano, but lower levels spread both to the south and east, forming a large L shape, and spreading over parts of the continental United States and Canada...."

Full Article:

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=18098

Credits:

Image courtesy Fred Prata, NILU. Caption by Michon Scott and Rebecca Lindsey.