Scientists have finally solved the long-standing mystery that the sun turned blue in Earth's atmosphere about 200 years ago. The color comes from a massive volcanic eruption in 1831 that spewed massive plumes of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere, causing global cooling and forcing some strange climate conditions on Earth that year. It is believed that this is the cause of the change.
Research published in journals Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) has discovered that the Zavalitsky volcano, located on the remote, uninhabited island of Simshir, which is currently disputed between Russia and Japan, was the epicenter of the eruption that changed the planet.
Scientists at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland confirmed their findings by analyzing ice core records from 1831. They added that no written record of direct observation of the 1831 eruption exists because the island where the eruption occurred is remote and remains largely uninhabited.
“It was a truly magical moment when we analyzed the two ash from a volcano and an ice core together in the lab,” study co-author Will Hutchison said in a statement.
“We analyzed the chemistry of the ice with very high temporal resolution. This allowed us to pinpoint the exact timing of the eruption in the spring and summer of 1831, confirm that it was highly explosive, and confirm that small We were able to extract pieces of the ash,” Hutchison added.
Although the research team has solved the mystery of the 1831 eruption and its impact on the sun, Hutchinson said they still don't have any instruments to address volcanic activity on the remote island.
“If this eruption were to occur today, I doubt we would be much better off than we were in 1831. This leaves us wondering when and where the next major climate-changing eruption will occur. It shows how difficult it is to predict what will happen.”
Also read |The probability of a large-scale volcanic eruption occurring this century is 1 in 6. Will it cause climate change?
large volcanic eruption
1831 was not the only time a volcanic eruption had global effects. In 1815, the eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia resulted in a year without summer on Earth. The eruption released 24 cubic miles of gas, dust, and rock into the atmosphere, causing global temperatures to plummet and ultimately leading to a 1 degree Celsius cooling in the Northern Hemisphere.
Scientists have warned that there is a one in six chance of a similar volcanic eruption that could destroy life on Earth this century.
The economic impact of a major eruption is staggering, with losses potentially reaching trillions of dollars. Moreover, the cooling effect is temporary and the Earth will soon return to a warming trajectory as greenhouse gas emissions continue.
