Yorkshire Philosophical Society

Event Information

The Eyjafjallajökull and Grimsvötn Eruptions: the Science Behind the Disruption to Aviation and How We Can Cope Better Next Time

Professor Stephen Mobbs, National Centre for Atmospheric Science

When the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull erupted in 2010 much of UK airspace was closed for six days. There were further disruptions in 2011 when Grimsvötn erupted. Why was the interruption to air travel so widespread and why is it that most of us had never experienced such an event before? Professor Mobbs will explain the science behind the airspace closure, the observations which were made in 2010 and 2011 and how all this has contributed to a much improved readiness for the next eruption.

Professor Mobbs runs the National Centre for Atmospheric Science, which is a research centre of the Natural Environment Research Council.

This lecture was preceded by a drinks reception for the Tempest Anderson Exhibition in the Yorkshire Museum, and then a tribute to him.

Report

The Tempest Anderson centenary.A joint event by the YMT and the YPS, held at the Yorkshire Museum: a preview of the exhibition, and two lectures.

Tempest Anderson, MD, DSc (1846-1913): a tribute by Jim Spriggs, YPS

Tempest Anderson died on board ship in the Red Sea returning from visiting the volcanoes of Indonesia and the Philippines. He was buried at Suez. His death caused his friends great distress and there were many tributes to him including a plaque in York Minster.

His house in Stonegate is now occupied by the York Medical Society. He practised as an ophthalmic surgeon, but was a man of wide interests, particularly in geology and vulcanology. On retirement he handed over his medical practice to his colleagues, the Gostlings, to pursue these interests. His gift of observation and talent for photography produced useful data. These included photographs of the effects of eruptions especially those of Mount Pelée (Martinique) and La Soufrière (St Vincent) which he visited as a member of the Royal Society Commission appointed to investigate the aftermath. His report on the human suffering he had witnessed was published in the Transactions of the Royal Society. He was a popular speaker and gave lectures accompanied by lantern slides, notably in the new lecture hall that bears his name.

Tempest Anderson had a gift for friendship and an extraordinary generosity. His funding of the new lecture hall (one of the first ferroconcrete buildings) in 1912 was widely welcomed, but his legacy of £50,000 to the YPS, of which he was President, rescued it from penury and has sustained it ever since.

Volcanoes, volcanic ash and future air travel by Prof Stephen Mobbs, National Centre for Atmospheric Science, Natural Environment Research Council, University of Manchester

The eruption of the small Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull in April-May 2010 caused enormous financial losses to the airline industry and to the economies of Europe. Water from the melted icecap produced an explosive eruption and a vast plume of ash was carried south into busy airspace. Aircraft were banned from flying through or near the ash cloud for a week until the plume had dispersed.

An earlier near disaster, of an aircraft flying into a volcanic ash cloud over Alaska in 1990, had already triggered important research. Volcanic Ash Advisory Centres, the International Civil Aviation Organisation, and, in the UK, the National Centre for Atmospheric Science engage in aspects of atmospheric research as well as management and regulation of the airline industry during volcanic activity. In 2010 The NCAS sent research aircraft to Iceland to obtain data on ash composition, toxic gases and sulphuric acid, aerosol layers, cloud droplets, velocity, and the effects of weather patterns. The data were provided by LIDAR (light detection and ranging), photography, cloud and aerosol spectrometers and satellite observation. Meteorological forecasting also helped to predict the path of the plume in 2010. The combined data have begun to show how airline schedules could be maintained in a future event. The eruption of Grímsvötn in Iceland in May 2011 was carefully monitored by a ground-based LIDAR taken to Keflavík International Airport, which plotted the height of the ash cloud and enabled the airport to remain open for half the period of the eruption. The Vanaheim consortium, a multidisciplinary research organisation, is engaged in modelling the dynamics of volcanic plumes, but accurate prediction for areas more distant from an eruption remains elusive. It’s still safer not to fly near ash plumes.

Volcanic activity in Iceland has a periodicity of about 140 years and eruptions are sometimes catastrophic. The eight-month fissure eruption of Laki in 1783-1784 caused terrible devastation and loss of life, even in the UK. An event such as the long-predicted eruption of Katla might affect a bit more than the airline industry.

Carole Smith