118 / Oh look, a cloud in the sky
The last time it happened in Sydney we had a lot of fun - and it did for great pictures. This one too.
That time in Sydney the spook was over in a day - this time the world over it will take somewhat longer, we have to wait and see. But the problems are mounting already. Most spectacular is the chaos in the airline industry. But more chaos is sure to follow. And that even if the neighbouring Islandic vulcano won't go up too. Should that second - larger - vulcano join in and eject even larger dustclouds (as is projected) we may find ourselves in a bit of a bind. A big one.
Remember the dinosaurs? They lived for some 160 million years. We - homo sapiens - have been around for some 60,000 years; 2 million years if you include our ancestors. They think dinosaurs disappeared within a few years. As the theory goes, it was a meteor that caused their demise. How so? How many dinosaurs can a meteor hit? Well, a few, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was the dustcloud the meteor caused (if it was a meteor - it also could have been a vulcano). It caused sun-light not to reach the earth, the climate changed - it got very cold - but most importantly, plants died and the food chain was destroyed. The dinosaurs didn't have a chance.
Let's just say, hopefully any other vulcano will keep its lid on. Methinks we are a little flippant about nature and the impact even little changes have on our wellbeing. Just think about the $trillions we spend on the 'War on Terror'. A neglectable problem in comparison to the problems nature may have in store for us. A few terms come to mind: Careless. Blind. Ignorant. Delusional.
Hmmm, there's a whole political argument in there somewhere.
Comment, by Jan, 2010.04.19
It's not mentioned but one wonders whether the worlds shown in films like 'The Road' could be scenes created as a result of such volcanic explosions ... hate to think ... You're right, we don't seem prepared for such catastrophes!
These pictures from the Eyjafjallajökull volcano's ash plume in April 2010 on Island are from the National Geographic website.