Canary Islands Volcano Ejects Dangerous “Lava Bombs” Weighing Half A Ton

Lava flows from Cumbre Vieja volcano on the Spanish island of La Palma have been ongoing for the seventh week, which began around Sept. 19. The volcano is now spewing what scientists call “lava bombs.” 

At the end of October, geochemist Harri Geiger visited Cumbre Vieja and captured a video of a large molten rock known as a “lava bomb. These molten rocks are rare and don’t occur with every volcano. According to the USGS, molten rocks only develop during an explosive eruption. 

The one Geiger found measures 3.2 feet across with an estimated weight of half a ton. Once ejected from the volcano, these projectiles can be extremely dangerous. 

Closer look at the lava bomb from #LaPalmaVolcano: pic.twitter.com/YH2IHfxuMd

— Harri Geiger (@harrigeiger) October 29, 2021

Over the last seven weeks, the island of La Palma has been devastated by the volcano. More than 2,600 building structures have been destroyed, and thousands of people have been evacuated. Here are lava flows: 

Here are jaw-dropping images of ash-fall, measuring in the feet, across parts of the island. 

Impacto de la capa de cenizas en la Carretera de S. Nicolás desde Las Manchas a Tacande / Impact of the ash layer on the S. Nicolás Road from Las Manchas to Tacande pic.twitter.com/xOTxTD6nrc

— INVOLCAN (@involcan) November 3, 2021

Homes buried in ash-fall. 

Residents of La Palma trying to keep from losing track of their houses in ash from the #volcano eruption pic.twitter.com/9J1Em7n6tb

— Legends (@JoinTeamB) October 31, 2021

More homes buried. 

On Monday, Reuters snapped a picture of the ongoing eruption at Cumbre Vieja. 

Shocking drone footage shows intense volcanic activity. 

Drone footage of La Palma’s Cumbre Vieja shows how intense the volcanic activity is inside its crater. Since the volcano began erupting, lava has covered 2,200+ acres and destroyed thousands of buildings and fields. More than 7,000 people have been evacuated. pic.twitter.com/f03d5UE4hv

— NowThis (@nowthisnews) November 3, 2021

La Palma’s economy is divided between tourism and agriculture. With both of them heavily impacted by the volcano, the Spanish government provides tens of millions of euros in aid. 

On the agriculture front, estimates show 1,500 of the island’s 5,000 owners of banana plantations have been damaged by the volcanic ash, according to the banana growers association for the Canary Islands, ASPROCAN. This means banana production could affect upwards of 30% of the economic life of the island. 

With no signs of stopping, the volcano continues to spew ash and lava that is devastating the island’s economy. Also, watch out for lava bombs.