The Thera Volcanic Eruption

Thera, the volcanic caldera in Greece that violently erupted 3500 years ago spawning the myth of Atlantis, and wiping out most of the Minoan civilization, is deforming. Scientists suggest that this caldera, a crater-like volcano that has collapsed in the past, may erupt again, making the people of the island vulnerable. The deformation could cause many disasters such as tsunamis, earthquakes, and obviously eruptions. Scientists argue whether the volcanic caldera unrest is actually a threat to the people in the Santorini archipelago. [7] [1] However, instead of thinking of this caldera deformation as a potential threat, it is possible to make it a benefit to scientists, the people of Greece, and the Greek economy.

The volcanic caldera in Santorini, Greece, is deforming, and this may affect the people in the Santorini archipelago, but more importantly the scientist researching the volcanic caldera, and the people of Greece. The volcanic caldera last erupted in 1950. This eruption was very minor and the lava volume was only 7 x 104 cubic meters. The most known eruption of Thera/the volcanic caldera is in 1610 BC, an eruption occurred and wiped out the Minoan civilization, and created massive tsunami’s. This eruption caused a lot of land damage, and had a lava volume of 9.9 x 1010 cubic meters. It was one of the largest eruptions in the last 10,000 years. [5] Currently the volcanic chamber underneath the volcano rose by around 10 to 20 million cubic meters, from January 2011 to April 2012. Also the caldera is deforming upwards. These are all signs of an eruption, and according to a Oxford University-led team, “It would be unwise to assume that the present state of unrest will not end in an eruption.” The research team is clearly stating that this deformation can become an issue. [6] However scientists such as Andrew Newman, a geophysicist at Georgia Tech in Atlanta, say that the chance of an eruption is highly unlikely, and that the current expansion in the lava