Humans and volcanoes | Tamsin Mather

There is a sense of looking to volcanoes and their power and recognising our own power as well, and with that power comes a great sense of responsibility.

About Tamsin Mather
"I am a professor of Volcanology. My work brings together expertise in volcanology/magmatism, atmospheric chemistry and paleoclimatology/stratigraphy. This combination allows me to tackle problems ranging from acute volcanic hazards and air pollution events in the present-day to the role of volcanism in the long-term evolution of our planet’s environment over its geological history and much in between. I am a 2010 Philip Leverhulme Prize Winner.
My main research interests centre on the science behind volcanoes and volcanic behaviour. My motivation is to understand volcanoes as (a) a key planetary scale process throughout geological time, vital for maintaining habitability as well as driving environmental change, (b) natural hazards and (c) resources (e.g., geothermal power and the development of ore deposits)."

Key Points
• Krakatoa’s 1883 blast is supposed to be the loudest bang ever heard by humans. It showed how explosive eruptions can generate lethal pyroclastic flows and tsunamis that devastate distant coastal communities.
• The 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption demonstrated that even moderate ash clouds can shut down international aviation and disrupt global economies for weeks.
• Seismic swarms, ground inflation, gas emissions and satellite radar provide advance warnings, yet limited monitoring and uncertain timing still impede precise short-term eruption forecasts.
• Geological records tie giant volcanic provinces to multiple mass extinctions, underscoring how Earth’s largest eruptions can trigger planetary environmental collapse. But the greatest contender for the sixth mass extinction event is really the global change triggered by mankind's activities.