The Chait茅n volcano in the southern Andes in Chile had been quiet for nearly 10,000 years before it suddenly erupted on May 2. The town of Chait茅n was evacuated, and a column of ashes and pyroclastic material reached 30 kilometres into the atmosphere.
Smaller eruptions have followed daily, interrupting flights and adversely affecting agriculture and wildlife. On May 29, some 600,000 salmon threatened by the ash were shipped out from a fish farm near the volcano.
Now experts warn that another, bigger explosion is possible.
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鈥淭he most complex current eruptive scenario deals with an explosion associated with dome removal,鈥� says Luis Lara, of the Volcano Hazards Programme at the Chilean geological survey.
The dome 鈥� a cone-shaped 鈥渞oof鈥� that is formed by accumulating layers of lava 鈥� is growing, and the potential for an explosion is real, Lara says.
Iv谩n Alejandro Petrinovic, a geologist at the Universidad Nacional de Salta and the Argentinian national science council, agrees that there is a chance of a major explosion caused by the increase of magma pressure inside the volcano.
Although authorities say the falling ashes are not toxic, a 鈥渟anitary alert鈥� was issued in the Argentine town of Esquel, and clean drinking water has been distributed.
