Volcanic plume rising through the clouds, the 2011 Shinmoedake eruption, Kirishima, Japan (no audio)

Описание: This footage shows the mushroom-like plume rising from the crater ascending through the clouds due to the intermittent explosions that occurred during the climax phase of the 2011 eruption of the Shinmoedake volcano. The shooting point is about 9km east of the crater center, in the Takaharu Town where was severely damaged due to the leeward side of this sequence of eruptions.

Volcanic plume consisting of magma fragments and volcanic gas rises with buoyancy. In order for the plume to rise, it is important that the turbulent ash cloud at high temperature takes in air from the surroundings and expands it, thereby gaining buoyancy. So, the height of the plume is governed by the amount of heat that the plume has and the efficiency with which the plume absorbs the surrounding air.

In addition, the plume stops its rise when it is in balance with the surrounding atmospheric density, and moves laterally while being affected by the wind direction. During a large-scale explosive eruption, eruption column can reach the stratosphere. Submicron-sized aerosol particles from such plumes may continue to reside in the stratosphere on a timescale of several years, blocking sunlight to bring global climate cooling.