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Sulphur Dioxide Emission From La Soufriere Volcano

Posted on April 22, 2021 by admin1  195

In News

Recently, the World Meteorological Organization announced that the Sulphur Dioxide (SO2) emissions from the La Soufriere volcano eruption reached India

About La Soufriere Volcano

  • La Soufrière is an active stratovolcano on the Caribbean island of Saint Vincent in the country of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, which lies within the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean Sea.
    • Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, located in the southern Caribbean, consists of more than 30 islands and cays, nine of which are inhabited.
  • It is the highest peak in Saint Vincent and has had five recorded explosive eruptions since 1718, most recently in April 2021.
    • The last time the volcano had erupted was in 1979.

Stratovolcano

They are steep cones built by both pyroclastic and lava-flow eruptions. The cone-shaped form slopes up gradually and becomes steepe

  • Stratovolcanoes are composed of volcanic rock types that vary from basalt to rhyolite, but their composition is generally andesite. They may erupt many thousands of times over life spans of millions of years.

Image Courtesy :Istock

Impacts of Eruption

  • Volcanic emissions reaching the stratosphere can have a cooling effect on global temperatures.
  • The most significant climate impacts from volcanic injections into the stratosphere come from the conversion of sulphur dioxide to sulphuric acid, which condenses rapidly in the stratosphere to form fine sulphate aerosols.
    • The aerosols increase the reflection of radiation from the Sun back into space, cooling the Earth’s lower atmosphere or troposphere,
  • Bigger eruptions during the past century have caused a decrease in temperature of 0.27 degree Celsius or more on the Earth’s surface for up to three years.

Sulphur Dioxide

  •  Characteristics: Sulphur dioxide (SO2), a colourless, bad smelling, toxic gas, is part of a larger group of chemicals referred to as sulphur oxides (SOx).
    • It creates secondary pollutants once released into the air.
      • Secondary pollutants formed with sulphur dioxide include sulphate aerosols, particulate matter, and acid rain
  • Source:These gases, especially SO2, are emitted by the burning of fossil fuels — coal, oil, and diesel — or other materials that contain sulphur. Sources include power plants,metals processing and smelting facilities, and vehicles.
    • Sulphur dioxide is also a natural by-product of volcanic activity.

Impacts of Sulphur Dioxide (SO2)

  • Respiratory illness: Sulphur dioxide, associated SOx  and secondary pollutants can contribute to respiratory illness by making breathing more difficult, especially for children, the elderly, and those with pre-existing conditions.
  • Smog: Sulfur dioxide and other SOx are partly culpable in the formation of thick haze and smog, which can impair visibility in addition to impacting health.
  • Acid Rain: It can cause direct harm to trees and plants by damaging exposed tissues and, subsequently, decreasing plant growth. Other sensitive ecosystems and waterways are also impacted by acid rain.

Source :DT


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