Electricity in Volcanic Clouds

In November of 1963 an oceanic volcano produced an island, Surtsey, just off the southern coast of Iceland. The volcanic crater was often flooded with sea water. Vigorous eruptions of steam and tephra were accompanied by an enhancement of the normal fine-weather potential gradient, and lightning was...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science
Main Authors: Anderson, Robert, Gathman, Stuart, Hughes, James, Björnsson, Sveinbjörn, Jónasson, Sigurgeir, Blanchard, Duncan C., Moore, Charles B., Survilas, Henry J., Vonnegut, Bernard
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 1965
Subjects:
Surtsey
Iceland
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.148.3674.1179
https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.148.3674.1179
Description
Summary:In November of 1963 an oceanic volcano produced an island, Surtsey, just off the southern coast of Iceland. The volcanic crater was often flooded with sea water. Vigorous eruptions of steam and tephra were accompanied by an enhancement of the normal fine-weather potential gradient, and lightning was often observed. Measurements of atmospheric electricity and visual and photographic observations lead us to believe that the electrical activity is caused by the ejection from the volcano into the atmosphere of material carrying a large positive charge. The concentration of charge in the eruption plume as it issued from the orifice of the volcano is estimated to be of the order of 10 5 or 10 6 elementary charges per cubic centimeter.

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