Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/10553/44215
Title: The 2011-2012 submarine eruption off El Hierro, Canary Islands: new lessons in oceanic island growth and volcanic crisis management
Authors: Carlos Carracedo, Juan 
Troll, Valentin R.
Zaczek, Kirsten
Rodríguez González, Alejandro 
Soler, Vicente
Deegan, Frances M.
UNESCO Clasification: 250621 Vulcanología
Keywords: El Hierro
Submarine eruption
Ocean islands
Magmatic underplating
Island growth and evolution, et al
Issue Date: 2015
Journal: Earth-science reviews 
Abstract: Forty years after the eruption of the Teneguía volcano on La Palma, 1971, the last volcanic event in the Canary Islands, a submarine eruption took place in 2011 off-shore El Hierro, the smallest and youngest island of the archipelago. In this paper, we review the periods of seismic unrest leading up to the 2011–2012 El Hierro eruption, the timeline of eruptive events, the erupted products, the wider societal impacts, and the insights garnered for our understanding of ocean island growth mechanisms and hazard management. Seismic precursors allowed early detection of magmatic activity and prediction of the approximate location of the eruption. White coloured “floating stones” (“xeno-pumice”) were described within the first few days of the events, the origin of which were hotly debated because of their potential implications for the character of the eruption. Due to epistemic uncertainty derived from delayed flow of scientific information and equivocal interpretations of the “floating stones”, the El Hierro 2011–2012 events were characterised by cautious civil protection measures, which greatly impacted on the residents' lives and on the island's economy. We therefore summarise the scientific lessons learned from this most recent Canary Island eruption and discuss how emergency managers might cope with similar situations of uncertainty during future eruptive events in the region.
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10553/44215
ISSN: 0012-8252
DOI: 10.1016/j.earscirev.2015.06.007
Source: Earth-Science Reviews [ISSN 0012-8252], v. 150, p. 168-200
Appears in Collections:Reseña
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