February 24, 2013 Eruption of Sakurajima
March 28, 2013
Photographer: Marc Szeglat
Summary Author: Marc Szeglat
Shown above is an impressive fusillade from Sakurajima volcano, on the island of Kyushu, Japan, as viewed on the night of February 24, 2013. Throughout the past four years, Sakurajima has been in a state of elevated activity. During the first two months of 2013, approximately 200 explosive events were recorded. On occasion, an eruption is accompanied by lightning. As can be seen on the picture, the lightning seems to emanate from near the crater rather than from a cloud above the volcano's 3,665 ft (1,117 m) summit. This phenomenon isn't fully understood. Our small exploration group (Richard Roscoe, Martin Rietze and Marc Szeglat) noticed that the flashes appeared in the first seconds following very powerful explosions. Scoria and very fine-grained volcanic ash were observed during such eruptions. For five consecutive nights we were stationed in front of the volcano and saw two eruptions with lightning. Photo taken on February 24, 2013.
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