Bali volcano in CRITICAL PHASE: Mount Agung one-third full of red hot lava
THE BALI volcano is in a "critical phase" ahead of Mount Agung's imminent eruption as the mountain's crater fills up with red-hot lava.
The PVMG estimates that one third of Mount Agung’s crater has filled with magma, according to Antara News.
"We calculate it based on the monitoring results of Himawari satellite images of seismic recording data, deformation and geochemistry," said Gede Suantika at the Agung Observation Post in Rendang Village.
He explained that the findings indicate the magma is still very hot and that the volcano is still “in a critical phase”.
Huge amounts of molten rock can be seen spitting out Mount Agung’s crater as a huge lightning storm rages in the background.
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An incredible image taken on Wednesday (November 29) by Nasa’s Terra satellite shows volcanic ash billowing out of Mount Agung.
Nasa’s Earth Observatory said: “The plume appears to rise from two vents in the volcano’s crater.
“Just as the plume’s sulphur dioxide levels can vary, so too can the amount of steam and ash.
“A whiter plume indicates the presence of more steam, while a darker plume indicates more ash.”
Mount Agung latest pictures: Volcano eruption begins
Thu, November 30, 2017Indonesian authorities raised the state of alert to its highest level for the volcano, Mount Agung, after thick ash started shooting thousands of meters into the air with increasing intensity
A plume of smoke above Mount Agung volcano is illuminated at sunset as seen from Amed, Karangasem Regency, Bali
Thousands of residents remain in a 10-km (6-mile) danger zone around the volcano, reluctant to leave for religious reasons or unwilling to abandon homes and livestock.
A rescue team escorted 10 people off its southwestern slope on Friday, some of whom said they had endured days of falling ash and feared potentially deadly volcanic mud flows.
An estimated 90,000 to 100,000 people live in the danger area near the volcano in eastern Bali.
Indonesian authorities have raised the volcano's alert to the highest level and expanded the danger zone to six miles.
And experts warned that a larger eruption is possible - adding that lava rising in the crater "will certainly spill over to the slopes”.
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Officials at the Disaster Mitigation Agency said in a statement on Monday that a Bali volcano eruption is “imminent” though the exact scale remains unclear.
The statement read: “Continuing plumes of smoke are occasionally accompanied by explosive eruptions and the sound of weak blasts that can be heard up to 12 km (seven miles) from the peak.
“Rays of fire are increasingly visible from night to the following day. This indicates the potential for a larger eruption is imminent.”
Indonesia's Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Centre also warned that an eruption of a size similar to that seen in 1963 could send rocks bigger than a fist flying a distance of up to 5 miles and volcanic gas a distance of 6 miles within three minutes.
Monitoring has shown the northeastern part of Agung's peak had swollen in recent weeks "indicating there is fairly strong pressure toward the surface", the centre said.
